But for the Grace of God
by Ryo-Wolf
Summary: If not for the smallest of changes, it is said one can essentially become another. With such a change, how similar can Naruto and Gaara become? In a world where these two similar individuals exist, what will happen when they meet? /Not Yaoi. Female Gaara.
1. Naruto's Prologue

Disclaimer: Naruto is the property of whoever it was that made it.

-o-o-

Sandaime Hokage Sarutobi sighed and took a long draw off his pipe, letting the intoxicating smoke fill his lungs before exhaling slowly. He watched the wisps drift out of his body and towards the ceiling with a bit of remorse, almost as if it had taken part of his soul with it as it left him. There was no easy way to do what he knew needed to be done. This was a decision that had been 6 years in the making, and he had foolishly put it off until the point he could no longer procrastinate. Within a few hours, the first day of a new Academic year would start in Konohagakure's ninja academy, and one Uzumaki Naruto was now old enough to attend. Whether or not he should be allowed to attend was the question that has haunted his thoughts ever since the Yondaime placed the boy in his arms just before dying from the aftereffects of his Jutsu.

'If only I knew what you wanted for the boy, Yondaime. But you died before you could tell me.' Sarutobi thought to himself, taking another long draw off his pipe. He could remember that day in crystal clarity, for it was easily the worst day of his life. The Kyuubi no Kitsune attack had decimated the village, killed hundreds of ninja and civilians alike, and even claimed the life of the Yondaime Hokage as he performed the sealing ritual to be rid of the Fox once and for all. And worst of all, the Kyuubi lived on in the body of a young boy, behind the Shinigami's seal the Yondaime sold his soul to create. That very same boy now wanted to attend the Ninja academy, he knew this for a fact. It was obvious just by looking at him that the Kyuubi held influence over the boy. How much, he didn't know, nor did he know if the Kyuubi could one day take over completely. If that were to happen, the last thing they needed would be for the demon to have years of Ninja training under its belt. It was hard enough to bring down the first time.

"You called for us, Hokage-sama?" an aged voice from behind him caused Sarutobi to turn towards the door, seeing his old teammates standing stoically at the entrance to his office. Sarutobi could only nod before turning back around, looking once again out the window towards the Hokage monument, again locking eyes with the stone sculpture of the Yondaime, as if he could gather some kind of answer to his questions from the mountain.

"Indeed I did. I assume you know why I called you?" Sarutobi responded, walking towards his desk and tapping a bit of ash out of the pipe into the tray he had for just such a purpose. Neither Homura nor Koharu said anything at first, walking further into the office towards Sarutobi's position.

"Today is the start of the academic year. Have you not yet decided whether Uzumaki should be allowed to attend?" Koharu asked, though she knew the answer already. Sarutobi didn't bother to answer the question itself, as he knew this as well.

"Do you think he should be allowed in?" He asked, sitting at his desk with a bit of a groan and setting aside his still lit pipe. Smoke rose slowly from the bowl as if it were incense, but with a much less pleasant scent.

"I know you want to honor the Yondaime's wishes, Hokage-sama, but the simple fact is that you do not know what they are. You need to forget your sentimentality for a moment and decide what is best for the village. Is it truly wise to allow a boy with such latent power to become a ninja? We don't know if the Kyuubi has polluted his mind. We can't be sure where his loyalties lie." Homura spoke with his usual candor, causing Sarutobi to sigh a bit. He had heard this same response from Homura every time the subject had been broached. He had always tried to disregard it in the past, but he knew he had no more time for deliberation. He had called on his former teammates for advice, despite already knowing what their answers would be.

"What loyalties? No one in the village has the courage to speak to the boy. The children don't even play with him, thanks to the way their parents act around him." Sarutobi responded. Frankly, he was surprised Naruto hadn't resorted to mischief yet, just to get the attention. The boy wasn't even allowed to have imaginary friends, as the paranoia of one particular villager caused a rather unpleasant reaction when he saw Naruto talking to himself. It had been the only time Sarutobi considered making a law to keep Naruto safe from the villagers that wished him harm, but he knew that would only make the boy even more ostracized than he already was. Luckily, that was the only time anyone had actually attacked Naruto, so such measures hadn't proved necessary.

"That is exactly the point, Hokage-sama. Though we have no one to blame but ourselves, the way Naruto has been treated would lead anyone to hate a village. If we give him the tools he needs to betray us, he could potentially bring down the village should he gain access to the Kyuubi's power." Homura insisted.

"But wouldn't preventing him from becoming a ninja only lead him to hate us more?" Koharu spoke up, causing a bit of surprise from both Sarutobi and Homura. In the past, Koharu had always stood with Homura against Sarutobi's decision to deliberate further. But now, it seemed she had changed her position.

"Are you suggesting that we allow Naruto to enter the academy?" Sarutobi asked, honestly surprised.

"You are not the only one who has been thinking about this issue over the years, Sarutobi-sama. Unlike Homura, my opinion on the matter has changed. However, I do not believe we should allow Uzumaki to enter the ninja academy." Koharu replied. Sarutobi blinked a few times before leaning back in his chair, looking at the aged woman for a few moments critically.

"That does not sound to me like your opinion has changed at all." Sarutobi pointed out, grabbing for his pipe in the process.

"Indeed. How, exactly, has your opinion changed on this matter, Koharu?" Homura asked, curious and skeptical of his former teammate.

"My decision has not changed, but my reasons have. I do not believe that the Yondaime Hokage would have wanted Uzumaki to be seen or used as a weapon. If he were to become a ninja, that is almost certainly how certain members of our council would begin to treat him. It would be best for the boy if he were encouraged to lead his life as a civilian. Hopefully, the hatred the people of Konohagakure feel for the boy will fade with time, and he'll be able to live a normal life." Koharu responded, causing a brief silence to fall on the room as the other two considered her words. Sarutobi took another long draw on his pipe and let the smoke slowly waft away from his mouth, rising towards the ceiling in a slow, almost sedated way.

"I must agree with Koharu, Hokage-sama. She makes a good point." Homura said finally, breaking the silence.

"Indeed," Sarutobi muttered, without even looking at the other two, "It seems it would be in Naruto's best interest if we were to prevent him from entering the Ninja Academy."

-o-o-

Naruto's Prologue

-o-o-

A young boy stirred slightly in his sleep, rolling away from the annoyingly loud sound that seemed to be coming from somewhere beyond the edge of his unconsciousness. His body desperately clung to sleep, his brain doing its best to ignore the repeated ribbit-like alarm emitting from the comically frog shaped clock sitting on a nearby nightstand. The young boy shifted further to the side, instinctively burying his face further into his lumpy pillow and pulling his blanket further up his head, trying to put as much material between his ears and the noise. It was futile, however. The boy had always been too hyper to be a deep sleeper, and had a stamina that most would consider inhuman. He could get by with so little rest, that he'd have surely driven any parental figures he may have had insane with his fickle sleep schedule. In that way, it may have been a good thing that he was an orphan.

"Unnn...Is it morning?" the young boy muttered tiredly, sitting up in his bed and reaching over for his clock. Though he stopped the alarm, it took his brain several moments to be able to comprehend the time listed on the face. 6:30 AM.

"Eh?" Naruto muttered, sitting up and looking across the room towards the calender on the far wall. several days were marked off with 'X's, with the remaining day being circled multiple times in red.

"It's today! First day of school, first day of school!" He shouted out happily, leaping from the bed and haphazardly tossing the alarm clock over his shoulder. In a flash, the 6 year old was in his closet, digging around for a pair of clothing that was actually clean. His orange footsie pajamas were hardly appropriate for going to school in.

"This'll do!" Naruto said with a happy grin, finding a pair of shorts and a T-shirt that didn't smell particularly horrifying. Naruto, despite his young age, had been forced to take care of every aspect of his life entirely on his own, as no one was really interested in helping him. This meant that he had to do everything that a parent would normally do for their child, from buying them clothes to providing them food. Now, no one has ever accused a six year old of being particularly good at either of these duties, which is why all of Naruto's clothing were either orange, black or white, and he lived almost entirely on a diet of Ramen and milk. The first was true because those were Naruto's favorite colors, and he saw no reason to buy anything else. The second was true, because it was the only thing that the 6 year old could afford that he knew how to prepare.

Thus it was that Naruto, dressed in a white T-shirt and some orange shorts, sat down to eat his breakfast of ramen and milk, as he did every morning. Unlike most mornings, though, he didn't quite have the patience to sit and eat. He was too eager. He had been waiting for this day ever since they let him live on his own (which had only been about a month ago.) Today would be his first day at the ninja academy, and his first step towards becoming a recognized Konoha Shinobi. Everyone in the village loved the ninjas. They were admired, and treated really well. So if he became a ninja, that'd mean they'd finally treat him good too!

"I better hurry. I don't want to be late." Naruto said to himself, finishing his ramen as quickly as he could and gulping down the rest of his milk. Naruto leapt out of his chair with a grin on his face, dashing towards his front door. He stopped abruptly in the middle of the entryway, making an exaggerated motion of looking around the room, as if searching for a hidden enemy. Naruto chuckled to himself as he pretended to dodge an invisible shuriken before rolling across the floor towards his front door, opening it and getting out as quickly as he could before closing it tightly behind him.

"Safe!" He shouted, having successfully avoided whatever imaginary foe had been after him. He laughed to himself again and headed down the steps and out of his apartment building, all the way trying to think of what cool ninja moves they'd be showing him how to do today. He'd once seen a ninja disappear into a cloud of smoke. He wondered how that worked? If they taught him that, he could have so much fun! He'd be much better at playing ninja than he could now, that was for sure.

"Or maybe, they'll give us some shuriken and show us how to throw it. That'd be so cool!" Naruto said to himself, grinning all the way as he ran down the street towards the ninja academy. A nice old man from the orphanage had shown him how to make pretend shuriken out of folded paper when he was younger, and he'd been throwing those around ever since. But a real, metal shuriken with the sharp bits and everything would be so much cooler, in Naruto's mind.

Naruto skid to a stop suddenly and pulled a paper shuriken out of his pocket as he spotted a cat lounging in the sun on a nearby porch. He pointed at it dramatically, holding the paper throwing star at the ready.

"A monster!" He exclaimed, causing the cat to raise its head and stare at him in that unblinking way only a cat can do. "I, Ninja Master Uzumaki Naruto will defeat you!"

With those words, Naruto threw the shuriken with all his might. Which essentially meant it flew forward a meter or so and fluttered pathetically to the ground, as it was not only made of paper, but Naruto was hardly an expert at throwing projectiles. However, the cat seemed to be annoyed enough by the antics of the hyperactive child that it got up and walked away, which counted as a victory over a vanquished monster in Naruto's book.

"Hey, what are you doing on my porch!" An angry looking woman shouted, emerging from the hous and waving her broom menacingly.

"Sorry, sorry!" Naruto shouted out before hightailing it back in the direction he was going. A brief chill ran down his spine as he thought about the cold stare the woman had given him. He didn't like thinking about it, but everyone in the village seemed to have something against him. He couldn't remember ever doing anything to them, but they all would give him such a cold stare. It made him feel worthless, unwanted.

'But that'll change soon,' Naruto thought to himself, his good mood returning with a vengeance. 'I'm going to become a great ninja, and then they'll all acknowledge me.'

As Naruto rounded another corner, he couldn't help but grin as he saw the ninja academy come into view. He was here, he was really here! He had come here before and just sat on the swing in front to stare at the building, wondering what amazing things went on inside. But now, he'd finally be able to go in. He'd finally be able to experience those amazing things for himself. As he approached the building, the front door suddenly opened, revealing a tall man that Naruto immediately recognized as being a ninja. Probably one of the teachers, in fact.

"Eh?" Iruka muttered, looking down to spot the short, blonde haired boy that was looking up at him in what he could only assume was awe. What a weird kid. He was hardly the most impressive ninja around. Hell, he was just a school teacher. There was an awkward silence that hung over the area for a few moments, as Iruka could only stand there in confusion while the weird kid just kept looking at him like that. He had been told to wait out in front of the academy for some kid the Hokage didn't think should be allowed to become a ninja to show up, he hadn't been expecting for some weird little...

'Wait a minute,' Iruka thought to himself, suddenly connecting the dots in his head. "You wouldn't happen to be Uzumaki Naruto, would you?"

Naruto blinked, completely not expecting that. How'd this guy know his name? Was it customary for the teachers to greet the new students like this or something? Oh! Maybe ninjas could read minds! That'd be so cool!

"Yeah I am. Are you my sensei?" Naruto asked, hopeful. It'd be great if this scar guy was his sensei. Maybe he could teach him that mind reading trick.

Iruka sighed to himself. Great, that made this much easier. He had been expecting to be standing out here for hours, but the kid showed up almost immediately. What luck! That meant he'd have time to prepare the lesson plan a little more, maybe even get some work done on planning the demonstration they'd be giving at the end of the week on proper shuriken and kunai safety.

"I am Iruka-sensei, yes. But I'm afraid I won't be your teacher. You've been barred from entering the Ninja Academy. I was sent out here to make sure you were informed before you went inside." Iruka explained. Naruto's face fell in an instant.

"...huh?" Naruto muttered, not understanding. He must have heard that wrong. That couldn't mean what he thought it meant.

"I'm sorry, but you can't become a student here." Iruka responded, simplifying his language a bit. Naruto stared up at him in shock, his mouth slightly agape. He didn't know what to say. He didn't even know how to react to that. His earlier fantasy of Ninja Master Uzumaki Naruto seemed to be crumbling to pieces in front of his eyes too fast for him to put it back together again. For once, Naruto simply didn't feel like smiling.

"But...why?" It was the only rational thought that came to him, and he immediately verbalized it. Why would they not let him join? What had he done wrong? Was he being punished for something? He couldn't remember doing anything bad. Why would they do this to him? Why did everyone always seem to single out him?

"I don't know why. I got a message from the Hokage himself that it'd be best if you weren't allowed to be a student. I don't question those kinds of orders." Iruka responded with a shrug, but he couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for the boy. Whatever this kid must of done to get that kind of punishment had to be steep. He had heard some punk kid had vandalized part of the Hokage tower. Maybe this was the culprit?

'He's only a little kid. He couldn't have managed that himself.' Iruka thought, dashing that possibility. He could think of at least three students of his that could have done it though. That kind of thing was right up their alley.

Naruto's eyes felt wet. He shut them tightly to try and hold in the tears, but that only served to squeeze a few out. A shudder crawled across his back before he could stifle it and he barely caught a sob before it escaped his throat. Why did the Hokage not want him to be a ninja? Wasn't he the one who had been giving him the money to buy food and clothes since he started living on his own? Naruto had thought he was the one person who actually cared about him. He had even sent him a letter once to cheer him up after that baker beat him up a year ago. Naruto couldn't read very well, but he had understood most of it. He had always thought the Hokage was a really nice man, so why would he say Naruto couldn't be a ninja? Why did he deserve that?

Why did everything bad always have to happen to him?

"O..oh..." Naruto muttered, trying hard to keep from sobbing between words and keep his tears from spilling out. "I'm s...sorry I bothered you..." He muttered, dropping his head and walking slowly away, towards a small swing hanging from the tree in front of the academy. It took most of Iruka's will power to keep himself from consoling the boy.

'Control yourself, Iruka! A ninja is not supposed to show his emotions. Whatever reason Hokage-sama has for keeping him from being a ninja must be a good one. There's nothing you can do about it.' Iruka thought to himself, but he still couldn't help but stare at the boy's back in sympathy as he slowly sat on the small piece of wood hanging from the tree and halfheartedly swung back and forth. With a final grunt of determination, Iruka turned away and went back into the academy building. He had work to do, damn it. He was better off just forgetting about the boy.

Naruto wasn't sure how long he sat on that swing, going back and forth, but he must have been there for a good half hour or so before other children, just as young as he was, began to show up and gather towards the academy building. Naruto couldn't help but look up and watch them from his position on the swing, hidden in the shadow of the tree. He watched them laugh and chat amongst themselves, he watched them playing ninja in front of the building before heading inside, he watched them go inside without incident. He saw no other teachers come out to take a particular student aside, nor did he see any of the students sent back outside shortly after entering. No one was singled out, no one was excluded. All were welcome.

Except him. Only him. He was always on the sidelines, always on the outside looking in, always alone. Nobody wanted him. Nobody cared.

This time, Naruto couldn't help but cry.

-o-o-

The next morning came as it always did before, but there was a distinct absence of something that made this morning different than all the others. It was quiet. Absolutely quiet. No ribbiting alarm clock sounded the rise of the sun, nor did a hyperactive blonde eagerly awaken to seize the day. Naruto merely laid in his bed, absolutely motionless. Aside from the rise and fall of his chest, and the occasional blink, he barely even twitched. His eyes were red and puffy, and his pillow was covered with the telltale signs of dampness from shed tears. He still wore the same white shirt and orange shorts he had been wearing the day before, having never bothered to change when he returned home. Scattered across the floor around the bed were thousands of scraps of torn up paper, almost looking like the confetti from a great festival. But there was no celebration the night before, only a sadness that had turned to a violent rage. If one were to look closely, they'd see that the torn scraps of paper had come from a great number of folded paper shuriken that had obviously been shredded.

Naruto slowly sat up, his desire to move and his hunger finally combining forces to get him to get out of bed. With a groan, he slipped out of bed and made his way towards his small kitchenette, figuring he'd just eat some ramen so his stomach would stop rumbling and then just try to go back to sleep.

Unfortunately, his plans were thwarted. He was out of food. And since the grumbling in his stomach was only getting louder, that meant he'd have to go out and buy himself something. Naruto grudgingly closed his cabinets before searching around his room for his wallet, not entirely sure where he had stashed it the last time he went for supplies.

"There you are Gama-chan." Naruto muttered halfheartedly, pulling out the toad wallet from his nightstand drawer and taking a look inside. It was almost empty. He had enough for food today, but tomorrow he'd go hungry without more money.

'I'll worry about that tomorrow.' Naruto thought, not in the mood to do much of anything. Instead, he just grabbed the last couple coins from the wallet and headed out the door.

-o-o-

Iruka couldn't understand it. He hadn't been able to stop thinking about Uzumaki Naruto ever since the day before, and his work had suffered a bit from it. Thus, he had decided to look through the records on the boy to try and figure out a reason for his being banned from the academy. Surely, if he could discover the reason, his guilt would subside.

But for the life of him, Iruka couldn't find a reason. For one thing, the boy's records were pathetically sparse. No complaints or criminal reports or anything of the like had ever been filed on him. In fact, he was an orphan, and there wasn't a record of who his parents were, so it didn't seem reasonable that the Hokage might have kept him out because of his lineage. In fact, besides for the weird way almost everyone he spoke to about the boy seemed to act, there was nothing even remotely interesting in his history. Iruka could only conclude that the bizarre feelings most of the more elder citizens held for the boy was the key behind his exclusion from the school.

'But why the hell would anyone feel ill will towards him? He's just a boy, what could he have possibly done?' Iruka wondered, walking down the street towards the academy building as he thought to himself.

'There must be something about his past that has caused this reaction to the boy. Something so secret, they wouldn't even keep a record of it, and yet a good portion of the citizens over a certain age know about anyway. Something that I'm apparently not privileged enough to know about.' Iruka stopped in the middle of the road at that thought before dropping his head and chuckling to himself.

'Now I'm coming up with conspiracy theories. I really have put too much thought into this. He's probably just a hell raiser that hasn't done anything bad enough to report, but he still annoys the crap out of his neighbors. It's the most likely scenario. The Hokage probably just thinks he isn't mature enough to be a ninja because of it. He'll probably be allowed in next year.' Iruka reasoned to himself before looking up again. He was about to go on his way, but a short figure caught his eye as he moved his way down the street with a small grocery bag in one hand, looking like it barely contained enough for a single meal. Iruka allowed himself to smile a bit as he looked at the boy, his decision made.

"Still sulking?" Iruka asked, causing Naruto to jump a bit in surprise. The blonde looked up at the scarred ninja for a moment, unsure of what he wanted.

"No..." Naruto muttered, though it was obvious from his tone that he was hardly cheery. Iruka chuckled a little, leaning over to muss up Naruto's hair.

"Don't worry, there's always next year." Iruka said, before standing up and going on his way. He felt much better all of a sudden. He figured a little encouragement couldn't hurt, and it certainly helped him feel less guilty after effectively destroying the boy's hopes and dreams the day before. Maybe now he could actually get some work done.

Naruto stood in the middle of the street, absolutely stunned by the encounter. What was that? Next year? Did that mean...did that mean he could still be a ninja? Yeah, he could still be a ninja. He just had to wait a little longer. He could do that! He was great at waiting! Yeah, one more year. One more year! He could handle another year. A year was nothing!

Naruto couldn't help but grin suddenly, his mood much better. He gently placed his hand on his head where Iruka had ruffled his hair, remembering the warmth he felt from his hand. And that look in his eyes, it had been completely unlike anything Naruto had ever experienced before. No one had ever looked at him like that. It was...warm. Kind. It was like the look he could see on the faces of a parent when they looked at their kids. It wasn't quite the same, but...it was similar. And it was leaps and bounds beyond anything Naruto had ever gotten from anyone before. At that moment, Naruto probably would have given damn near anything for someone to look at him like that again.

Iruka stopped suddenly and turned around, but saw nothing out of the ordinary in the street behind him. That's funny, he could have sworn someone was following him. He turned back around and kept going again, when that feeling struck him once more. Someone was definitely following him. Iruka didn't turn around this time, instead walking along as if everything was normal before rounding a corner towards the academy. As soon as he was around the bend, however, he quickly vanished from sight.

Naruto rounded the corner, careful to make sure that Iruka didn't notice that he was following him. However, as soon as he was on the next street, he couldn't see Iruka anywhere. Weird, where did he go? It was just then that an explosion of smoke behind Naruto caused the six year old to jump and turn around, seeing a figure emerging from the cloud.

"Ah!" Iruka called out, emerging from the cloud of smoke towards his stalker with a kunai drawn, "Ha?" however, upon seeing that the person following him was a 6 year old blonde kid, he faltered, and stopped his attack before it began. What was this kid, a lost puppy? Why was he following him around?

"Ah! That was so cool!" Naruto cried out, looking at Iruka in awe. He just got to see a ninja trick up close and personal.

"Hey sensei, lets play ninja, okay?" Naruto suddenly asked, still looking at Iruka with that hero worship in his gaze. Iruka didn't know what to think. He didn't expect this boy to be so desperate for companionship. He knew he lived alone, and that most of his neighbors didn't like him, but this...all he had done was mussed up his hair! And now, Iruka couldn't help but feel like the boy was clinging to him like a log in the ocean. How bad could his life possibly have been to warrant this kind of a reaction?

'This boy...for one so young, he's probably had more than enough rejection in his life. And to be orphaned so young, he's obviously incredibly lonely. What kind of hypocrite would I be if I turned him down? He only wants to play.' Iruka thought. It seemed rational, but he couldn't help but feel like he somehow wasn't supposed to be indulging the boy. The bizarre circumstances around why the Hokage refused to let him into the academy were still nagging at him, and he still couldn't come up with a good reason why he'd do that.

"I can't play with you, I've got a class to teach!" Iruka said, trying to reason with the boy. Maybe, just maybe, he could get out of this guilt free. Surely he'd see that he couldn't skip work.

"Well, after class then! Can we play ninja then?" Naruto asked, practically pleading as he looked up at Iruka. His resolve shattered. What the hell, what could it hurt to play around with the boy?

"Alright, after school, I'll play with you. But I have to get to the academy now." Iruka said, and couldn't help but smile at the way Naruto seemed to explode with joy at the idea. Yeah, it wouldn't be so bad playing with the boy for a little while. He seemed like a perfectly ordinary kid to him, which only made the fact he was banned from the academy even stranger.

'I should just ask Hokage-sama myself. That should clear things up.' Iruka thought.

-o-o-

Naruto waited impatiently on the swing outside the academy for Iruka, too happy and too eager to do anything else but sit there and wait until the day was over. Naruto had never been happier. Finally, he had found someone who didn't stare at him coldly. He was kind to him, he was nice. He even agreed to play ninjas with him! The blonde couldn't wait to play ninja with a real ninja. He was sure it was going to be the greatest thing ever! Iruka was his friend. Naruto finally had a friend.

Despite his impatience, the time seemed to fly by quickly. Before Naruto knew it, kids started filing out of the front door of the academy on their way home. Eager to meet up with Iruka, Naruto quickly got off his swing and headed towards the gathered students.

"Hey, didja see that Henge no Jutsu Mizuki-sensei showed us?" Naruto overheard one of the students say. His curiosity got the better of him and he stopped to listen in. Henge no Jutsu sounded like some kind of awesome ninja trick.

"Yeah! That was so cool. He transformed into the Hokage! It was amazing! I can't wait until we learn that. Too bad you change back if you get hit though." Another student responded, having been who the first one was addressing. These kids had Naruto's undivided attention. Henge no Jutsu? Transform into the Hokage? That sounded awesome!

"Heh, my dad's already taught me the Henge. You guys are slow." Another student added in, looking proud of himself.

"Nuh uh!" The first boy said.

"Prove it!" the second added.

"Fine then, I will!" The third boy shouted, determined. Naruto's eyes were glued to the boy as he formed a seal with his hands and started concentrating. Suddenly, with a cry of 'Henge!' the boy exploded in a cloud of smoke. When it cleared, he appeared to have transformed into a poor caricature of an adult. The two other boys started laughing in response.

"That doesn't look anything like Mizuki-sensei!" The first one said between his giggles.

"You suck." The second one added.

"Hey, I'd like to see you guys do better!" The third boy shouted out indignantly, having changed back in the process.

"I can do that!" Naruto suddenly shouted out. He immediately regretted it as the three boys turned towards Naruto, looking at him skeptically.

"Huh? Who're you?" The first one asked.

"I think he's that kid my mom's always yelling at." The second one added.

"You aren't even in our class!" The third shouted. Naruto gulped. He hadn't been sure why he said it. He just suddenly had the urge to show off to the three, even though he didn't know the first thing about using ninja skills.

"So what? I can still do a henge! It's easy!" Naruto responded. It was too late to back down now, so he figured he might as well roll with his bluff. The three looked at him skeptically again before shrugging and looking at the blonde intently.

"Okay, do it then."

"Yeah, prove it!"

"I'll show you!" Naruto said triumphantly before standing straight up and getting in position. He tried putting his hands into the same position as that other boy did, pointing his middle finger and pointer finger up on both hands, and clasping one within the other. Then, he closed his eyes and concentrated on changing into Iruka. He had no idea what else to do, so he just tried to imagine himself transforming.

"Come on, we haven't got all day." The first one said impatiently.

"Yeah, do something already!" The second added in. Naruto just kept his hands in the seal and kept concentrating, trying to do something, anything, at this point. He didn't care if it was Henge, but it was far too embarrassing to just stand there and do nothing.

"Eh? What's that?" Naruto heard the third one ask, but he didn't know what he was referring to as his eyes were tightly closed and he was concentrating with all his might. Little did he know that a spiral seal had suddenly formed on his abdomen beneath his clothes as he subconsciously began to tug at his chakra, trying to drag it to the surface. However, Naruto was only 6, and had never gone through the necessary training to start building up his chakra, or even to properly mix it and draw on it. Thus, he was essentially reaching for something that his body simply couldn't give him yet. The only thing it could give, was a very different energy.

Naruto didn't notice when that energy began to seep out of his body and spin around him like a miniature cyclone, nor did he notice the fearful looks the three boys and the rest of the gathered students were giving him as this happened. Instead, he just kept concentrating, drawing more and more of that evil red chakra out as it swirled and twisted about his body in a malevolent whirlwind of terror. The sound of screaming drew Naruto out of his concentration, causing the red chakra to dissipate as he opened his eyes, just in time to see the students fleeing from him in horror.

"Huh? What's wrong? Where are you going!" Naruto called out, but none of the students felt it was necessary to respond. Instead, they just kept running.

Iruka stood in a dumbfounded stupor. What in...What in the hell was that? A kid Naruto's age, especially one with no chakra training at all, simply should not have been able to produce a reaction even a 10th as potent as that. And that chakra...it had felt downright evil. It just shouldn't have been possible for a 6 year old to produce such an effect. He didn't even know of seasoned ninjas that could instill such a sense of hatred and fear into their chakra. It simply wasn't possible.

'What the hell is this boy?' Iruka thought to himself. Perhaps he should visit the Hokage a little sooner than he had intended. In an instant, Iruka vanished, just in time for Naruto to turn around and see an empty doorway. With nothing better to do, he returned to his swing, intent on waiting for Iruka.

-o-o-

Sarutobi sighed a bit as he took another long draw on his pipe. He found he had been smoking an awful lot lately, and he knew it couldn't be good for his health. He was an old man, after all. He should have probably been treating his body a bit better. However, as they say, old habits die hard. In the same vein, he figured it was a given that the older the habit was, the harder it was to die. And smoking? He must have started that when he was 16. He couldn't imagine he'd be quiting anytime soon.

"What is it, Iruka?" Sarutobi asked without turning around, taking another draw on his pipe. Iruka didn't bother to act surprised. This was the Hokage, after all. He wasn't egotistical enough to believe he could actually sneak up on the man.

"I want to know why you prevented Uzumaki Naruto from entering the ninja academy." Iruka asked in a determined tone. Sarutobi turned and looked at the man, briefly wondering why he suddenly broached this subject. He had been expecting to receive that question shortly after giving Iruka the order, but instead he accepted it without question. But to become curious now, after a day had passed, was a bit odd.

"I have my reasons. Why are you interested?" Sarutobi asked, figuring he may as well get straight to the point.

"Preventing a child from becoming a student isn't exactly common practice, Hokage-sama. Not only that, I can't see a good reason for it, considering Naruto has done nothing wrong in the past to warrant any kind of punishment, let alone one so severe." Iruka responded. He hoped the Hokage would have just come out and say his part, give a concise reason and be done with it. The fact he seemed evasive only made Iruka's suspicions deepen.

"It's not a punishment. I merely feel its in Naruto's best interest not to become a ninja." Sarutobi replied. That didn't seem to be the answer Iruka was expecting.

"Naruto's best interest? What's that supposed to mean? Wouldn't his best interest be what makes him happy? Does this have anything to do with the way the villagers treat him, or that strange evil chakra he has?" Iruka asked. Sarutobi sat up in an instant at the mention of the evil chakra, suddenly becoming very serious. Iruka only gulped. He knew something was going on. Hopefully, he could get the Hokage to tell him exactly what that was.

"Evil chakra? What do you mean?" Sarutobi asked, cautiously. He seemed on edge all of a sudden. That certainly got his attention, Iruka figured.

"After classes let out, Naruto was trying to show off to some of the students and manifested an incredibly evil feeling chakra. Even the students could feel its malevolence. They ran away screaming shortly after he started." Iruka explained. Sarutobi slumped into his chair, seemingly becoming much more fragile in that instant. If Iruka didn't know any better, he would have sworn the Hokage had aged considerably.

"This...does not bode well..." The Hokage said, his pipe forgotten for a moment. He glanced at Iruka suddenly, debating with himself the merits of either telling him the truth or keeping it secret. With a sigh, he figured Iruka might as well know.

"What I am about to tell you must not leave this room. Do you understand?" Sarutobi insisted, sounding exactly like the authoritative leader he was. Iruka didn't even consider for a second disobeying the order.

"Yes, Hokage-sama." He replied obediently.

"6 years ago, as I'm sure you are aware, the Kyuubi no Kitsune attacked our village." Sarutobi began. He saw Iruka's confusion, but did not allow any interruption before continuing.

"That night, after the battle, I made a new law just after the Yondaime passed, and made every ninja present at the time swear to never disobey it. It was a secret law, and only the Jounin, Chuunin and civilians that were present during the Kyuubi attack should have known about it, and what it involved. You were only a boy at the time, not even a genin, so its understandable that you wouldn't know about it. However, considering the number of people who seem to know about it now, I can only suspect that someone has broken this rule, and the knowledge I wanted kept secret has spread to almost every adult in Konohagakure, even those that were too young or not present during the attack. I'm honestly surprised you haven't caught wind of it yet. That was fortunate, I think." Sarutobi said. Iruka could only look even more confused than before. He saw that Sarutobi had taken a brief pause to smoke his pipe, and felt the urge to speak up.

"But, what does this have to do with Naruto?" Iruka asked. Sarutobi glanced at him and he quickly shut up, but felt his question was valid regardless.

"It has everything to do with Naruto. That law I made, was to forbid anyone from revealing the true fate of the Kyuubi no Kitsune. Yondaime did _not_ successfully kill it, as I led the village to believe." Iruka sucked in some air suddenly, already connecting the dots in his mind and wishing them to be false. It couldn't be. It just...wasn't possible.

"The Yondaime was only able to seal the Kyuubi into the body of an infant, and died shortly thereafter." Sarutobi finished. Iruka clenched his fists, not wanting to believe what he was hearing. That...that monster was still alive? The damn demon that had killed his parents and destroyed half the village, was allowed to live?

"Naruto..." Iruka muttered, but trailed off. Naruto is the demon fox? As much as he didn't want to believe it, it made sense.

"Indeed. Naruto was that infant. In order to protect him, and prevent a panic in the village, I forbade anyone from revealing what really happened to the fox or that he was within Naruto, as well as telling the village that the Yondaime had died in battle to deliver a death blow to the fox. However, it seems someone saw fit to disobey me, and now Naruto has become completely ostracized because of it." Sarutobi finished. Iruka could only nod, still feeling oddly numb after absorbing that information. He didn't know what to think, or what to feel.

"I...see." He managed to say, but he still didn't quite comprehend it.

"So you see, I prevented Naruto from becoming a ninja for his own benefit. If we were to train him as a Shinobi, people would undoubtedly want to use the power of the nine tailed fox as a weapon against our enemies, and that is not a fate I want for him, nor would I condone such hubris as to believe we could control such power. Its better if he learns to accept life as a civilian, and he must never learn the truth of his past." Sarutobi sat back and took another drag on his pipe, savoring the taste of it as it filled his lungs. Iruka was still standing like a frozen statue in the middle of his office, clearly lost in thought.

"Do you understand, Iruka?" He asked, breaking the chunin from his inner turmoil. Iruka merely nodded and quickly left. He had a lot of thinking to do.

Sandaime could only sigh as he tried to relax into his chair, feeling that perhaps things could only get easier from here. Had he known how terribly Iruka had misunderstood what he had said, he probably would have been much more worried than he was. He probably would have been able to prevent what was about to happen as well.

Instead, he simply picked up a nearby book, and began to read.

-o-o-

Iruka wandered the streets of Konohagakure in a daze, barely paying attention to where he was going. He was lost in his thoughts, which weren't getting any more coherent as he went. He didn't know what he should do, didn't know if what he felt he had to do was what he should do.

That demon...that damn demon had caused nothing but pain and suffering for everyone in the village, and the Hokage was allowing him to live on as a 6 year old boy. What was he thinking? What would happen when Naruto came of age? He clearly already had some level of demonic power, if that demonstration from earlier was any sign. But...Naruto was so innocent, so childlike. It was completely different from how he would expect the demon fox to act after being trapped in the body of a boy. But...foxes are tricksters by nature. Was it all a ruse? Was he merely acting like a harmless, ordinary boy to lower the guard of those around him, and earn sympathy? Iruka didn't know. He couldn't know.

But he had to find out.

It wasn't long before he found himself in front of the ninja academy, and Naruto was upon him almost immediately. Iruka almost jumped out of his skin as Naruto approached him, but he quickly chided himself for that reaction. He couldn't let the boy suspect anything! He couldn't risk him getting suspicious.

"What's wrong, Iruka-sensei?" Naruto asked, seeing Iruka acting oddly edgy around him. For a brief moment, he could have sworn he saw that cold look everyone else gives him enter Iruka's eyes, but he discarded that notion immediately. Iruka was his friend, he was the only one that cared about him. He wouldn't give him a cold look.

"Nothing is wrong, Naruto. Nothing at all." Iruka muttered, but he certainly didn't feel confident in his words. Naruto accepted them immediately though, without a hint of suspicion. 'Is he really the demon fox?'

"Say, Naruto. Didn't I agree to play Ninja with you earlier? Why don't we go out into the forest right now and play some." Iruka suggested, causing Naruto's face to light up suddenly.

"Yeah! That's a great idea, lets go!" Naruto shouted out, practically vibrating in place. He certainly was hyper...

"How about you lead the way? We want to find a good place, far away from the village, so that we can play all we want. If you find a real good place, I'll even let you play with one of my shuriken." Iruka said. Naruto accepted the idea without hesitation and immediately headed off towards the edge of the village, urging Iruka to follow him. Idly, slowly, Iruka drew a single Kunai from his leg pouch as he followed behind the hyperactive boy. He needed to be quick, painless. Even if it was the demon fox, Iruka couldn't bring himself to cause such a young child to suffer. Besides, if he didn't kill it with the first blow, there was no guarantee that the fox wouldn't recover and retaliate.

'But...I don't even know if he's truly the fox. The Hokage said so, but...can I really kill such an innocent child?' Iruka thought, following after the young boy with the Kunai loosely held in his hand.

'I need to be sure. I need to get him to reveal his true nature. Only then can I kill him without the guilt, without mercy. But how...?' Iruka slipped the Kunai back into the pouch as he considered that, following Naruto closer and closer to the edge of the village. Pretty soon, they'd be coming up on the village wall. He couldn't risk being seen with Naruto by the gate guards. Besides, there were more than enough secluded sections of forest within the walls of Konohagakure to kill the fox without potentially endangering others. Luckily, Naruto seemed to be leading him to just such a spot.

'I know. I'll just come at him with killing intent. If he's truly putting up a ruse to trick me, he should drop it when he sees I'm trying to kill him, and fight back. If he doesn't...then I could always say it was just an act. We're playing ninja, after all. I could claim I got carried away. I'll apologize, and we can go onto a different activity. No harm done.' Iruka thought, pulling the Kunai out of his side pouch again.

'But if he is the demon fox...' Iruka didn't finish that thought, instead clenching his fist around the handle of his Kunai and holding it at the ready.

"Ne ne, how's this Iruka-sensei?" Naruto asked happily, spinning around to look at his elder, only to have the smile fall from his face in an instant. Iruka had a kunai in his hand and was standing rigid, giving him a look far colder than any Naruto had ever received. The closest thing he had ever seen was from that baker a year ago, who had beat him up for talking to his imaginary friend. But this look...it was so much worse than that. It filled Naruto's mind with fear. He could feel his legs shake as he looked into Iruka's eyes, not wanting to see those horrible eyes but being unable to look away. Every instinct Naruto had told him to run away. His body was certain that Iruka intended to kill him. His mind wanted to disagree.

"I...Iruka?" Naruto asked cautiously, fearfully. He took a step back despite himself, shaking like a leaf under the intense gaze of the chuunin. He couldn't believe it. Why...why would Iruka look at him like that?

"Die." Iruka said it in a tone that harbored no response. It wasn't a suggestion, nor an order. It was a statement, an absolute truth that could not be second guessed. Iruka was moving and Naruto could barely comprehend it, didn't know how to react, didn't know what to do. He could only close his eyes, throw up his hands, and scream.

"NO!" Naruto cried out, his voice carrying far more power and force than a six year old should be able to apply. Iruka stopped in his tracks as a wave of malevolent energy smashed against his body like a tsunami against a shoreline. He had practically felt an impact from it, and dropped his kunai in surprise. Naruto's body was surrounded in a brilliant crimson energy, the like of which Iruka had only felt twice before. Once had been earlier that day, when Naruto had released it around the school children. The other had been six years prior, on the day his parents died.

'He is the demon fox!' Iruka thought, overcoming the wave of terror Naruto was putting out and drawing another Kunai from his pouch. His cause was suddenly justified, his guilt gone, taking any ounce of mercy he had with it. Iruka would hold nothing back. For the good of the entire village, he had every intention of ending the Demon Fox where he stood, regardless of the body it wore.

"Die!" Iruka cried out. This time it was an order, as if Iruka intended to force his enemy to fall simply because he commanded it. He wasted no time charging headlong into the storm of chakra Naruto was putting out, his Kunai ready and willing to spill blood.

Naruto opened his eyes, only to see Iruka charging with even more intensity than before. He didn't have time to think or plan, even if he could have through the overwhelming fear. Instead, he reacted on instincts he didn't know he had, instincts that didn't even feel like they were his.

Iruka struck with as much force as he could muster, his eyes widening in surprise as his blow failed to connect. Naruto wasn't even within arm's reach by the time he brought his blade down, having ducked and leapt to the side almost before Iruka started his attack.

The boy had clearly changed. The whisker marks on his face had darkened and become more pronounced, and his eyes had taken on an unmistakably vulpine appearance, becoming dark red orbs with slit pupils that seemed to ooze the same malice that polluted his chakra. Despite this, his face was still a mask of fear, as if the body and the eyes were experiencing separate reactions.

'I can't afford to be so sloppy. He's just a boy. He's not as strong as he was 6 years ago. I can kill him! I have to kill him!' Iruka recovered from his failed attack with a fist full of shuriken he let fly towards the nimble boy. Again, he dodged in a way that seemed like he wasn't even trying, But that attack had only been a distraction.

"Bunshin no Jutsu!" Naruto had to stop at the shout, his eyes widening in surprise as the forest became filled with copies of Iruka, each one holding a Kunai at the ready. Naruto nearly wet himself as his body went into overdrive, dodging and weaving from the waves of ninja coming at him from every direction. But Naruto proved too quick, even for a field of clones, always narrowly avoiding their attacks by a hair's width.

Finally, apparently tired of chasing him down, all of the clones threw their weapons simultaneously towards the crouching boy. Knowing he couldn't possibly dodge so many projectiles, Naruto simply leapt, surprising himself with how high he managed to go.

It was then that another Kunai came flying out of the tree line straight for Naruto's chest. Unable to change his direction in mid air, he quickly lifted his hands to protect himself, taking the blade in the forearm.

"Aaah!" Naruto cried out in pain as the blade pierced his arm completely, spraying his blood onto his shirt as the tip emerged through the other side of his arm. He landed awkwardly on top of one of the Iruka clones, passing through it like it wasn't even there. Immediately afterward, they all faded away like smoke in the wind as the real Iruka leapt down from a nearby tree.

'They were...they were illusions?' Naruto thought, not believing it. They had looked so real. He could have sworn...but it was all a trick. Iruka had tricked him into jumping, so that he could get him while he was stuck in mid air. If he wasn't so filled with fear, Naruto would have been impressed.

"Why...Why do you want to kill me?" Naruto asked, pulling the kunai out of his arm with a grunt of pain and dropping it to the ground like it was on fire. He stared up at Iruka as he approached, another Kunai in hand. He couldn't understand it. Iruka had been so friendly before.

"Don't play dumb, you damn demon. You destroyed half the village 6 years ago and killed my parents. This...This is vengeance!" Iruka shouted, rushing forward and taking another swing at the boy, which he deftly ducked.

"What do you mean? I don't understand." Naruto muttered, dashing away from Iruka and jumping into a nearby tree to avoid another barrage of shuriken.

"Don't act like you don't remember! 6 years ago, the Yondaime Hokage died in order to seal you into that body. You're the Kyuubi no Kitsune that attacked Konohagakure!" Iruka shouted. Naruto froze in place, not believing what he heard. He...He was the demon fox? Was that why everyone looked at him with such cold eyes, why everyone hated him? Why wouldn't they, if he had decimated the village six years ago? He...it was all his fault. All those people, all those villagers. He had killed them? His entire life, everything he could remember for the past 6 years, that was his punishment?

Naruto grunted suddenly, feeling something cold and hard plunge into his body, followed by a sharp pain from his abdomen and a warm wetness that spread across him, soaking into his shirt and shorts. He had become lost in thought, and that had cost him. Iruka was now kneeling before him, still gripping the kunai he had just stabbed Naruto with tightly in his hand.

"Die..." Iruka muttered, a few tears making their way into his eyes despite himself. "Just die!" Iruka pushed forward with the Kunai, forcing Naruto to stumble backwards until his back came into contact with a tree trunk. Still, Iruka pushed. He pushed until he felt the familiar resistance of his Kunai biting into wood before he let go.

Iruka stumbled back, looking at the boy literally nailed to the tree with surprisingly little remorse. However, there was something about what he was seeing that didn't seem right. Naruto's face had changed. His face was no longer a mask of fear, but rather a more neutral indifference, while his eyes still held as much malice as before. An odd sizzling sound caught his attention and Iruka glanced to the wound he had put in Naruto's arm, horrified to see that it was rapidly healing.

"You..." Naruto muttered, causing Iruka to turn his attention away from the boy's arm. Shouldn't he be dead? A wound that big on a body so small, how could he still speak?

"You aren't Iruka." Naruto suddenly said, before taking a step forward. Despite being pinned to the tree behind him, he seemed to have no qualms with just letting the kunai stay behind as he pulled himself off it. Much to Iruka's horror, that wound, too, began to close.

"W..What!" Iruka muttered, not understanding what the boy was talking about, nor particularly liking how ineffective his apparent death blow had been.

"You aren't Iruka! Iruka was kind to me! Iruka was my friend! He wouldn't say something so horrible! You're just using Henge! It must be Henge!" Naruto suddenly dashed forward, a look of determination on his face as he picked up one of Iruka's fallen kunai in mid run. Iruka was too shocked to react, not that there was much he could do against the raw speed Naruto clearly gained from the Kyuubi. He'd been one step behind the boy during the entire fight. He had no chance of avoiding the blow that followed.

Naruto leapt and impacted Iruka's torso with the force of a cannonball, burying the kunai into the man's chest in the process. He had heard what those kids said earlier. Henge let you change into other people, but if you got injured it disappeared. He was determined to see the face of this impostor, determined to see who would want to hurt him with such lies.

But Iruka simply hit the ground with a grunt of pain, Naruto crouched on his abdomen with his hand firmly around the handle of the Kunai knife embedded in Iruka's left lung. The fallen ninja coughed up some blood, but he failed to transform.

"It...it's henge..." Naruto muttered, suddenly uncertain. "It's Henge!" With this, he pulled the knife from Iruka's body and plunged it in once more, earning another cry of pain but no transformation. "It's Henge! It's Henge! It's Henge! It has to be Henge! Henge!" Naruto cried out, over and over, each time pulling out the blade only to plunge it into the man's chest again and again in a barely controlled frenzy. Soon, Iruka lay still, his entire chest bloodied, but his body never changed. Naruto could only slump back and stare in horror at this. It...it really was Iruka. Iruka had said all those things. He had killed Iruka.

He..._killed_...Iruka!

"AAAAAAAAHHHHHH!" Naruto cried out, back peddling away from the body as quickly as he could. He didn't know how to react. He didn't know what to do. His mind was in absolute turmoil. He was the demon fox? How could he be the demon fox? But he just killed Iruka. A normal boy wouldn't kill someone, especially not his only friend. He must have been the demon fox. Naruto curled up into a ball as his mind began to race, unsure of what conclusion to come to. That was when he saw it, the strange spiral seal on his abdomen. The seal! That must be the seal Iruka had mentioned, the one Yondaime used to seal the Kyuubi.

"If I really am the Kyuubi..." Naruto muttered, grabbing one of Iruka's discarded kunai off the ground, "...Then I should go back to being a fox!" Naruto took the Kunai and pressed it hard against his flesh before dragging it across the seal, cutting open his abdomen and spilling his blood in the process.

"And if I'm just a boy, then I don't wanna live with this stupid fox anymore!" Naruto continued, dragging the kunai across his belly again. It was worthless, though. The Kyuubi had no desire to die, and was sending Naruto's regeneration into overdrive to keep his wounds healing almost as fast as Naruto was opening them. As well, the cuts across the seal had absolutely no effect on how well it held. Despite this, Naruto continued to attack himself with the Kunai, desperate to somehow cut the damn fox out of him if he could.

"Get out!" Naruto cried out, shutting his eyes tightly as he impaled himself on the knife. He opened his eyes again, only to find himself kneeling in a pool of foul smelling water, in what he could only assume was a sewer.

"Foolish boy, do you truly want to die?" Naruto spun around and quickly turned his gaze upward, trying to take in the immensity of the cage before him. He couldn't see anything beyond it, but he was certain that is where the voice came from.

"You're the fox, aren't you!" Naruto accused the darkness, earning only a low chuckle in response. It was still incredibly deep, and seemed to cause the floor beneath him to rumble. The beast beyond the cage had a remarkably powerful voice.

"And what if I am?" The voice asked. Despite how loud and clear it was, Naruto felt that the fox was barely speaking above a whisper.

"You ruined my life. You made Iruka hate me. I want you out of my body!" Naruto cried out, pointing accusingly at the cage again. The voice once again chuckled its deep, amused chuckle, and Naruto couldn't help but feel that the cage seemed to be stretching, getting bigger, surrounding him.

"I would want nothing more than to do just that, little boy. But I'm afraid I'm a bit too attached to this place, as it were." The voice replied, as the cage only seemed to continue to surround Naruto. Soon, it truly was completely around him, bars in every direction. It almost made him wonder which one of them was truly caged, the fox, or Naruto.

"You and I, we are of one body. Besides, why would you want me to leave? I make you strong, I make you powerful. I've protected you since you were an infant. What have they done for you?" The voice said, causing the cage to vibrate with the power of its voice. Naruto dropped his head at that, not sure how to respond.

"They hate you. Despise you. They wish you were never born. Why would you want to be with them?" The voice came from Naruto's right this time, causing the boy to turn towards it to give his response.

"They only hate me because of you! They'd all care about me if you weren't around! They'd acknowledge me if it weren't for you!" Naruto shouted. Everything was the fox's fault. Everything would have been fine if it weren't for him.

"Are you sure?" The voice replied from Naruto's left. Naruto turned to it, but the voice seemed intent to address him from the side.

"How do you know they would treat you any better? If I were to disappear right now, what difference would it make?" He asked, from Naruto's right.

"Would they love you? Acknowledge you? What would make them change? Could you really convince them that I was gone?" This time the voice came from the left.

"They hate me, fear me, distrust me. And because of that, they feel the same for you. If you approached them, telling them I was gone forever, would they have any reason to believe you? Would they truly accept you with open arms?" The voice asked from directly in front of Naruto. The six year old had to admit, that didn't sound likely. They'd just call him a liar and chase him off again. Nothing would change.

"But...if you were never around, they wouldn't have a reason to hate me." Naruto weakly argued.

"What's done is done. The past cannot be changed. You can only move forward." This response came from behind, but Naruto didn't bother to turn towards it. If the fox wanted to move around so much, Naruto didn't feel the need to turn to face the voice.

"You cannot make them like you, they will always hate you, always." The voice said, now coming from all around as he seemed to circle around Naruto as he spoke. "But I, I am different. I have always been there for you. When they reject you, I accept you. When they hurt you, I protect you. No one will ever love you, no one will ever care about you, fight for you, or wish you well. Only I care about you. Only I will protect you. Only I love you."

Naruto looked up, trying to see through the bars to the thing that was beyond it. Was it truly a monster? It's words were so kind, and they rang true in Naruto's mind. If it weren't for that weird power he felt from the fox, Iruka would have killed him. It was the fox that had protected him. Could it really be so bad?

"I am your friend, young one. Your only friend. The only friend you will ever have. I can make you strong, I can make you powerful, and I can make them acknowledge you." Naruto looked up sharply at that, desperately trying to see the Kyuubi through the bars.

"R...Really?" He asked. Another chuckle from the voice was his response, and Naruto smiled a little despite himself.

"Oh yes. I can make the entire village acknowledge you. I can make the Hokage let you become a ninja. With my help, you can become the Hokage yourself. All you must do, is a little favor for me." The voice responded as Naruto hung on every word.

Him...Hokage? The Hokage was the leader of the the entire village. Everyone would acknowledge him then, even people from other countries!

"What do you want me to do?" Naruto asked, eagerly.

"Simply walk through the bars, my boy. Just come through the bars." Naruto could almost hear the smirk in the way the voice spoke, but he had no reason to disbelieve the words, or distrust them. With barely a moment of hesitation, Naruto walked towards the bars. Slowly, carefully, he slipped through, looking around in the darkness for his friend.

"**Ha****ha****ha****ha****ha****!**" Naruto jumped with fear from the sound of the roaring laughter. The fox hadn't held back its full voice that time, causing the entire room to shake as if from an earthquake from the power of its laugh. Naruto could see it now, in all its horror. The fox stood before him as a true monolith, a gargantuan form rising far above him. He doubted he was any larger than one of its teeth as it hunched over him, looking down at him with a mischievous smirk and a diabolical look in its eyes. Naruto would have wet himself were he capable of such a thing in this plane, as he was completely shaken with fear down to his very core. All the sweet words spoken moments before were forgotten in an instant as Naruto truly and completely regretted his decision to listen to the fox.

"**Foolish ****boy****. ****So**** trusting****, ****so ****gullible****. ****You**** don****'****t ****even ****know ****what ****you****'****ve ****done****.**" The rumbling voice of the fox rang out across the cage like thunder as Naruto cowered before it. Oh yes, the fox would give him power. He would make everyone acknowledge him. But he severely doubted that the boy would achieve it in the way he originally thought, nor that he'd be in any condition to enjoy it. As his smirk of victory widened, The fox lifted a paw and brought it down towards the trembling boy, the very representation of Naruto's Psyche. Now the true fun began.

Back in the forest, crouched over a puddle of his own blood, Naruto suddenly jerked upright, the Kunai falling from his fingers as he fell on his back. Power surged through his body. He could feel it, hear it, taste it, see it. It pulsed within him and flowed freely from his form, quickly surrounding him in a cloud of red chakra. It felt amazing, exhilarating. It was unlike anything Naruto had experienced before. However, there was a fine line between pleasure and pain, and as the power continued to build and build, it pushed past that line and kept going. Naruto was no longer enjoying the build of power as the tingling that spread across his body went from pleasant to irritating to burning, and it was only getting worse and worse. The boy opened his mouth to let out a cry of pain as the power continued to build within him, his mind fraying at the edges from the intensity of this overwhelming power. His body couldn't take it, it was like trying to shove the ocean into a thimble. As the power continued to build, Naruto couldn't help but feel as if he was going to explode at any moment. It was too much! He, quite literally, couldn't contain it.

And then, the flames began. The spark of power seemed to race across the aura of chakra that had enveloped his body before the entire thing just burst into flames. Naruto let out a wail of absolute agony as he began to thrash about, desperately wanting to put himself out. But these flames would not be stifled, they could not be. While an ordinary flame burns brightly, rising towards the sky as if reaching out for more oxygen to burn and consume, this flame had no need for oxygen. It only wanted chakra, and it consumed it with the same vigor. Naruto was a bonfire that not even water would quench as he thrashed and rolled and screamed and _screamed_. The pain was unbearable, it was beyond anything Naruto could imagine. He could practically feel his mind breaking under the strain of the unbearable pain of the insatiable flames, and there was nothing he could do to dull it. His only choice was to sit, and to burn. It was beyond what a human should be able to experience and survive, but Naruto was unfortunate enough to be capable of complete regeneration. No matter how much he burned, he simply regenerated, and burned again.

He did not know how long he had been there before the pain seemed to go away. But, is that really what happened? Perhaps, he had just become accustomed to it? He was still burning, there was no doubt about that, but it didn't seem to hurt like it had. In fact, it was oddly pleasant. Naruto sat up and looked down at his hand, watching in an odd fascination as his skin cracked, peeled away and incinerated only to grow back almost immediately, just to repeat the process again. He found it oddly hypnotic, and briefly wondered what else looked so interesting as it burned.

It was then that he spotted Iruka's body. No, that wasn't Iruka. It was a fake. Iruka was his friend. But the fox was his only friend. Maybe Iruka was the fox? Yes. That made sense. With a grin, Naruto lifted his hand towards the body of the faux-Iruka and concentrated for a moment, willing it to burn.

Instantly, obediently, the body complied, slowly smoldering at first before it simply burst into flame and burned. A low, amused chuckled escaped Naruto's throat as he watched the body burn. The hair vanished almost immediately, followed rather quickly by the skin. But the flesh, that took a little longer, as well as his clothing. But still, both eventually succumbed to the flames, consumed irrevocably. The last to go were his bones, but even they were not impervious to Naruto's flames. As he watched, the embers burned lines across the bone before it simply crumbled away. Soon, the fire died, having nothing left to consume. There was only ash now, and that was being carried away by the wind.

"He burned rather well, Iruka-sensei." Naruto muttered with a grin, getting to his feet as the flames that had bathed his body finally seemed to recede, returning Naruto to some semblance of his normal appearance. However, he was unmistakably changed. No one would ever notice, as no one had bothered to pay enough attention to the boy to truly recognize him, but that youthful vitality that he used to beam almost constantly was gone, replaced by something else, something darker, something mischievous. His eyes no longer held the innocence they once did either, now holding a glimmer that could only be described as crazed, as if he weren't entirely sound of mind.

Naruto, briefly, entertained the idea of setting fire to a tree, just to watch it burn, before he remembered something more important. He wanted to join the ninja academy, didn't he? Yeah...he wanted...he wanted to become Hokage. But...didn't the Hokage say he couldn't be a ninja? Perhaps he should visit him. Yes, that sounded like a good idea. With that, Naruto stood and started down towards the Hokage tower, briefly wondering how a Shadow would look when it burned.

-o-o-

A chill ran down the Hokage's spine suddenly, inexplicably. He felt as if there was some profound wrongness with the world, a horrific taint on the very fabric of his reality as he knew it. And worst of all, he felt as if the source of that feeling just walked on his grave. It was a bad omen unlike any he had felt before, a chill that sent cold shocks through his bones, directly into his soul. Something...Something terrible had happened.

Needless to say, Sandaime was on edge as he turned towards the doors of his office, almost expecting them to burst open in that instant while simultaneously thinking that was the last thing that would happen. He wasn't thinking straight. His eyes darted across the room, towards a crystal ball that lay atop a simple pillow. He needed to consult the ball, discover the source of his ill feelings.

The sound of footsteps halted that process of thought before he continued it. Someone was, in fact, coming towards his door. Someone small, as the foot steps held little weight to them. Sarutobi turned and faced his doors, fully expecting whoever it was to shed some light onto the omen he had just felt.

He had not been expecting a small, blonde six year old to come through that door. And the presence of this particular boy made Sarutobi's blood run cold and breath seize in his chest. Anything, _anything_ involving this boy that could have given him such a premonition, could only spell absolute disaster.

"What are you doing here, Naruto? It's late, shouldn't you be in bed by now?" Sarutobi said simply, masking his suspicions and apprehension behind a facade of grandfatherly kindness. He could only hope, and pray, that his doubts were unfounded.

"I'm going to be a ninja." Naruto stated. It was simple, it was to the point. It sounded absolutely wrong coming from the throat of the young boy. Nothing Naruto had ever uttered had been said in such a cruel, straight forward and harsh tone. Barely above a monotone, he spoke as if he were presenting a cold, indisputable fact to someone he found incredibly distasteful. Naruto was a vibrant boy, ever cheerful, always loud, always extravagant. He was never quiet, never distant, and certainly never spoke in a threatening tone. Sarutobi was almost tempted to believe that someone had simply transformed into the boy and was doing an incredibly poor job of pretending to be him, but that arguably made less sense.

"You're going to make me a ninja." Naruto added, in the same tone as before. He had the slightest hint of a smirk on his face that seemed to fluctuate as he slowly entered the room. It was almost as if he was trying not to smile, as if he was privy to some great joke Sarutobi wasn't intelligent enough to understand, and he didn't want to have to explain it.

"Naruto, I kept you from entering the Ninja Academy for your own good. Its in your best interest that you do not become a-"

"SHUT UP!" Naruto interrupted the Hokage before he could finish, his face suddenly contorting into a look of such rage that Sarutobi actually had to resist the urge to flinch at the sight of it. It was gone in an instant though, replaced by that oddly empty expression he wore when he entered the room. Sarutobi knew something was definitely wrong now. This was _not_ Naruto, of that he was certain. Something had happened to the boy. Something had changed him.

"It's your fault, all your fault. Everything's your fault." Naruto suddenly said, still walking closer. Ever slowly, ever deliberately crossing the room a step at a time.

"You didn't want me to be a ninja. You sent that fake Iruka after me. It's your fault he tried to hurt me. It's your fault he said all those mean things." Naruto said, accusingly. Sarutobi wasn't entirely sure what he meant by that, but it certainly didn't sound good.

"Fake Iruka? What do you mean by that? What did he say to you?" Sarutobi asked, but he had a feeling he knew what 'mean things' Naruto meant. This was bad. The boy had clearly learned of the Kyuubi, and from the looks of it that information had caused him to snap.

"The real Iruka is my friend! The real Iruka is my only friend. He didn't let that fake Iruka hurt me. He protected me. Iruka loves me. He makes me strong..." Naruto completely ignored the Hokage's question, raising his head and standing up straight for the first time as his face cracked into a full, mischievous grin. "...He makes me burn."

This time, Sarutobi did take a step back. The sight of a six year old boy suddenly bursting into crimson flames was not the kind of thing even a hardened Shinobi like himself could easily ignore. He could see, with crystal clarity, the way Naruto's body burned from the intense flames. Embers rose from his flesh by the thousands, vanishing a few inches above his body as they completely burnt themselves out. Sarutobi knew them to be pieces of Naruto's skin, despite the fact the boy seemed to be regrowing what burnt away at an alarmingly accelerated rate. Oddly enough, his hair did not burn, nor did his clothing. Only his body seemed to be effected. Only his flesh was on fire.

The room was quickly filled with the scent of burnt skin and flesh. There was no doubt that Naruto was truly, honestly on fire at that very moment. Despite it all, he did not scream. He didn't even appear to be in discomfort. In fact, he was still grinning. The grin is what made it the most disturbing.

"W...What is this?" Sarutobi muttered in shock and fascination. He could only assume that this was some kind of representation of the Kyuubi's power. He could remember, with distinct clarity, the fires the Kyuubi brought forth six years ago. The deep, crimson flames that covered its enormous body. It was not something he would soon forget. The fact that Naruto could access it, could call it forth with such ease, and seemed perfectly content to bathe himself in it was a frightening idea indeed.

"I'm gonna be a ninja. I'm gonna grow up big and strong, and become a great ninja. And one day, I'll take your job. I'll be Hokage, and you won't stop me." Naruto said simply, still bathed in flame. He started walking forward again, resuming his slow approach towards the Hokage.

"And what if I do stop you?" Sarutobi asked, fairly certain he knew the answer already.

"I'll make you burn. I'll make you burn, Just like that fake Iruka!" Naruto shouted, the flames seeming to jump in intensity in response to his emotions. Sarutobi's heart sank at that. It seemed Iruka was now dead, and Naruto had apparently convinced himself that the Kyuubi was, in fact, Iruka, and the other was somehow a fake. If he had already taken a life, then he had to tread carefully from here. It was obvious Naruto was hardly in a stable condition. Who knew the level of damage he could do to the village if he were to try.

"I'll make you burn. I'll make you all burn. Iruka won't let you stop me. I'll make anyone that wants to stop me burn and burn! I will be a ninja! I will be Hokage! You can't stop me." Naruto's tone was becoming crazed, his eyes wild. They were still his normal azure eyes, but they were distant, unfocused. "No one can stop me." He added, almost in a whisper.

"Do you know what a Hokage is, Naruto?" Sarutobi asked. It was obvious to the aged ninja that he only had two real options here: He could either reason with the boy and try to calm him down, or kill him where he stood. He'd rather not have to resort to that, but if need be, he would be willing to take Naruto out for the sake of the village. Hopefully, Sarutobi could talk some sense into him. He prayed the boy would listen.

"The Hokage is the strongest ninja in the village. I'm strong! I can be Hokage. I will be Hokage." Naruto insisted. He seemed to be in thought for a moment before he chuckled to himself, "Hokage. I bet they have to burn really well."

"I'll acknowledge you as a potential Hokage, and allow you to become a Ninja, but on one condition." Sarutobi said. He saw he had Naruto's undivided attention at that. Good, it seemed that despite the boy's animosity towards him, he was still capable of listening.

"A Hokage must be a protector of his people. He has to put the villagers before himself. Only when you can protect others before yourself can you become Hokage. And only when you promise never to attack a citizen of the leaf, will I let you become a ninja." Sarutobi said. Naruto looked at the man curiously for a moment, his flames dying down until they disappeared. Protect others before yourself? That didn't make sense.

"Why would I want to protect them? They all hate me, none of them care about me. I only need to be strong to be Hokage, and I'm plenty strong." Naruto insisted. What good would protecting others do him? He didn't need any of them. He'd just burn them all anyway, then they wouldn't need protecting.

"No matter how powerful you become, you would never be strong with that mindset, Naruto. When you want to protect something important to you, more important than your life, and you're willing to fight to protect that important thing, only then can you truly be strong." Sarutobi stated. Naruto actually took a step back at that, as if struck. That...that made no sense! He was plenty strong! Iruka made him strong. He didn't need to protect anything. Iruka made him strong!

Sarutobi watched Naruto's reaction with great sadness and disappointment. It was obvious the boy wouldn't be able to understand such a lesson. No one had ever cared about him, nor had he been able to form an attachment with anything else. He couldn't expect him to comprehend the intense desire to protect something you cared about.

"You may think you are strong, but do you think you can beat me?" Sarutobi asked, surprising the young boy and drawing him out of his inner thoughts.

"I am little more than an old man, far from my prime, and you have the power of the greatest demon the world has ever known. Despite that, if you fight me, you will lose." Sarutobi stated simply, trying to gauge Naruto's reaction to that. Before the boy could respond, he continued.

"There isn't a single jutsu or technique I know that can compare to the power of the Kyuubi no Kitsune, but even so, I would defeat you if you were to fight me. Do you know why, Naruto?" Sarutobi asked. He saw the boy shake his head in the negative.

"It is because of my love for this village, and all who live in it. I would be willing to sacrifice my life to protect every last one of them, and that makes me strong. While you, you have nothing. You don't even have a reason to fight. It was the same six years ago, when the Kyuubi no Kitsune attacked the village. With all its power, all its immense ability, it was still defeated by a single man, who had the desire to protect his village above all else." Sarutobi stated. Naruto seemed to grow angry at the thought of it, but he didn't say anything.

"I am willing to sacrifice my life to protect this village, and that makes me strong. It is why I am Hokage. Unless you learn to feel that, you can never become Hokage." Sarutobi stated. That was ridiculous! Iruka made him strong, Iruka said he could make him Hokage. He didn't need to protect anyone. Once he became a ninja, Iruka would be able to make him Hokage. That's all he needed. He'd become a great ninja, and become Hokage.

"That's a lie!" Naruto suddenly shouted, his flame returning. "I can become Hokage on my own. I don't need to protect anyone. Once I become a ninja, I can become Hokage!"

"You can't become a ninja without my consent, Naruto. And I cannot give you my consent unless I know you won't harm anyone of this village." Sarutobi stated. Naruto grunted in annoyance and crossed his arms, looking away from the elder.

"I don't wanna." He said simply, childishly. It was the closest thing Sarutobi had seen yet that resembled the real Naruto. Perhaps, there was still a shred of that boy underneath whatever it was the Fox had done to him. It was a small glimmer of hope, at least.

"Promise me that you will not bring harm of any kind to anyone from this village, or fight me here and now. Those are your only options, Naruto. I will do whatever it takes to protect the people of this village. If you do not agree, I'll have no choice but to fight you." Sarutobi replied. Naruto turned his back on the man and stared at the opposite wall. He thought about it, weighing the pros and cons of it. On the one hand, he could just burn the old man into ash, but he really didn't want to do that. He didn't know why, but Naruto didn't want to cross the old man. It wasn't fear, it was something else. Respect, maybe? No, that wasn't it. There was something about him that made Naruto feel edgy, like any fight he could get in with the old man would be worthless. Futile. Oh well, he might as well cooperate. As long as nobody tried to hurt him, he didn't see a reason why he couldn't let them go unburned.

"Alright. I promise not to hurt anybody from Konoha unless they try to hurt me first." Naruto said, turning back around to see the look on Sarutobi's face. He didn't seem convinced.

"And I promise not to kill anybody from Konoha unless they try to kill me first." At that Sarutobi nodded.

"That's acceptable." Sarutobi said, kneeling down and offering his hand to the young boy. Naruto grinned again and took it, sealing the deal in a firm handshake.

-o-o-

To be Continued

Ryo-Wolf


	2. Gaara's Prologue

Disclaimer: Naruto is the property of whoever it was that made it.

Author's note: First of all, Gaara is a girl in this story. If you've read this far looking for Yaoi, you're out of luck. This isn't even a Naruto/Gaara pairing. Not in the way you're probably thinking, anyway. On that note, I apologize in advance for the confusing gender pronouns I use for Gaara. Different people see her as different genders, and depending on the point of view of a particular paragraph, Gaara will be referred to as both.

Example: Gaara's father will always call Gaara 'He,' even in his thoughts and the paragraphs written from his POV. In fact, mostly everyone will refer to Gaara as 'he,' despite her actual gender, simply because they don't know the truth. Gaara herself, though, will always call herself 'She,' cause she's a girl.

Try to keep that in mind while you read, and try not to get confused.

-6 years ago-

She was breathing heavily, he could hear it despite the distance. She was still in the hall, still being rushed in. He tried not to pay her much attention. Though she was his wife, he couldn't bother himself to worry about her now. He had important work to do, and she wouldn't be around much longer anyway. The door blew open as the medical ninjas and the doctor rushed in with the gurney containing his very pregnant wife. She was in labor, about to give birth to his second son. It was the perfect opportunity.

"What's going on? What are you doing?" He heard her say, through her pain. He ignored her question, hearing them switch her from the gurney to the bed. He simply continued his work, knowing that there was little room for error in his jutsu. It needed to be perfect. He needed to concentrate.

For her part, his wife was clearly upset. He wasn't surprised. He had neglected to tell her of his little plan. At the moment, He could hear her struggling against the medical ninja as they put her into restraints. It wasn't as if she could escape, being in labor like she was. But he couldn't risk her thrashing about, or trying to resist what was to come. Instead, he ignored her screams, ignored her cries for assistance, asking him to stop, begging him not to do what he planned to. He wasn't going to stop, though. That wasn't an option. Instead, he kept writing, slowly but surely working his way across the room as he wrote out the seals he'd need on the tile floor of the hospital room. The hard part was coming soon, as he'd have to inscribe the seal up the fabric of the bed sheet, then onto his wife's engorged abdomen, where his son slept.

"Why are you doing this? Please...Please don't do this. Not to me...Not to our child..." She got out through the tears, looking down at her husband as he started his way up the side of the bed. Her eyes darted across the room, towards where he had come, where the seal led. That damn teapot sat upon a table, surrounded entirely with that intricate seal that crossed the room towards her bed, rapidly making its way up to her unborn child.

"Stop...please..." She wept, desperately hoping this was just some horrible nightmare. She didn't want to believe her husband would do something so horrible to her, but there he was, his face a mask of complete uncaring as he began writing his seals on her body.

"You know I can't do that." He said simply, not caring what fate he was damning his wife to with each stroke, somehow unconcerned of what was about to happen to the woman he supposedly loved and the child she carried. Suddenly, the sadness was gone. Her rage boiled within her as he continued drawing on her belly, working on his seal. Just as he seemed to finish and stepped back, she spat at him, watching with some amount of satisfaction that the damn mask of an expression cracked as her saliva hit his cheek, the slightest hint of a frown crossing his face.

"You son of a bitch." She growled, struggling against the bands that tied her hands to the bed. She wanted to hit him, to break his skull open. Choke him, castrate him. So many forms of violence and none of them she could express. She could only spit and glare. She watched as he wiped his face, wishing she could do so much worse. She couldn't help but feel the urge to cry when she saw him smile.

"Are you ready, Kazekage-sama?" One of the medical ninjas asked, standing by the side of her husband like a loyal dog. Her husband simply nodded without hesitation.

"Do it." A woman's screams erupted from the small hospital room and echoed across the hidden village of sand, but they did not last long, instead being replaced by the weak cries of a newborn child.

"It's a girl." The doctor said simply, without the normal joy that accompanied childbirth. Sand poured forth from the broken teapot, spilling on the ground and flowing across the room like a barely corporal snake. It went to the child quickly, crossing over its body protectively, taking the baby from the doctor that delivered her.

For his part, Kazekage frowned. A girl? His wife had dared give him another girl? The Jinchuuriki of the sand, carrier of Shukaku, the Ichibi no Tanuki, a woman? That was unacceptable. No one would give such a girl the fear his weapon deserved.

"No," He responded, giving the doctor a harsh look. "It's a boy. Understood?" The doctor only nodded, too afraid to contradict the man before him.

"W...What will you name her..." The doctor asked, earning a glare from the Kazekage, "...him." He corrected.

"Gaara." He replied, looking at the small, redheaded child being cradled in the grasp of the living sand. Yes, that would be an appropriate name for his weapon. This one, would be Sabaku no Gaara.

-4 years ago-

Yondaime Kazekage narrowed his eyes slightly as he struck out with his palm, shattering the sand and scattering it across the training room floor. He frowned as it quickly reformed and returned to its place near his son's feet. He was beginning to become annoyed with these interruptions.

"Gaara, how many times must I tell you not to use your sand while we're training? I need to teach you the basics before we can concentrate on improving your power." He said, chastising the two year old. He expected more from his weapon, despite his young age. Part of the seal ensured Gaara's mind would mature at a much faster rate than normal, a crucial safety measure to defend against Shukaku, so being too young was no excuse for his poor performance.

"Sorry, father. It was an accident." Gaara apologized, trying to will the sands away so that she could continue the chakra training her father was giving her. The sand protested, as it usually did around her father. Gaara could never figure out why. She was certain it hated him. However, it did eventually comply, moving back towards the side of the small training area.

The Kazekage watched the sand with some degree of humor, knowing full well why it was so eager to strike him whenever he and Gaara practiced. Even in death, his wife was as spiteful and bitter as she had always been. Though she had no higher thinking anymore, or intelligence to speak of, it seemed the absolute hatred she felt for him upon her death had survived in her current incarnation as another one of the simple, base instincts the sand acted upon reflexively. He felt a little proud of her for managing such a thing, though he'd have to be wary of it. Perhaps it was time to hand Gaara over to his uncle to be raised? The Kazekage was getting fairly annoyed with the fact the child never slept anyway.

"Now then, lets try this again." He said simply, beginning the lesson anew.

-o-o-

"You want me to take care of Gaara?" Yashamaru asked in shock. His surprise was for two reasons: that the Kazekage actually trusted him enough to take care of his beloved 'weapon,' and that he was actually dense enough to think Yashamaru would want to listen to the man after what he did to his sister.

"I don't like your tone, Yashamaru. Regardless of your misplaced anger, I'm still the Kazekage of this village, and you will give me the respect I deserve." The Kazekage responded with a glare.

Misplaced? Yashamaru wanted to laugh at that. But he didn't. He was a Shinobi of the sands, and despite how much he wanted to ring the neck of the man sitting before him, he knew better than to laugh in the face of Yondaime Kazekage.

"And yes, I do want you to take care of Gaara. I can't take the time out of my duties to ensure the boy is brought up right. I've already passed Temari and Kankuro onto others to be taken care of, and it is time I do the same with him." Kazekage explained simply. It was no surprise to Yashamaru that the man was so eager to pawn his children off on others. He certainly wasn't a competent father figure in even the most generous definition. However, Yashamaru was still unsure why he would be willing to give Gaara to him, of all people. The Kazekage wanted Gaara to be his precious tool, a weapon of war to be utilized to regain the respect and fear Sunagakure had lost of late, and hopefully regain customer traffic as well.

"I mean no disrespect, Kazekage-sama, but why would you entrust Gaara to me? I will not raise the boy to be the weapon you want him to become. It would be a disgrace to my sister's memory." Yashamaru asked, doing his best to leave his hatred, indignation and confusion out of his tone. He couldn't help but show his confusion when he saw the Kazekage begin to smile.

"Disgrace your sister's memory? Perhaps I should tell you exactly what happened during the sealing ritual. Karura died while cursing the name of Sunagakure for what we did to her. She gave her child the name 'Gaara' out of her hatred for both him and the village that spawned him. She died, wanting nothing more than for Gaara to become her tool of vengeance. A demon that loves only itself. A fitting name for a weapon, don't you think?" The Kazekage lied expertly, though Yashamaru didn't know that. The only people that did know the truth were the Kazekage himself, those three medic nins that had been killed in action one by one within months of the ritual, and the doctor who had an unfortunate, fatal accident only a week after Gaara's birth. So really, the Kazekage could have made up any damn story he felt like, since no one could contradict him. He had almost said his wife had died willingly, but even Yashamaru wouldn't have believed that.

"What? That..." Yashamaru muttered, not entirely sure how to respond to that information. To think, that his sister could hate one of her own offspring so much? He didn't doubt for a moment that his sister died cursing the name of the village; he had a feeling she had a few choice words for her husband at the same time, though the Kazekage had conveniently left that part out. However, to feel such disdain for her own son to name him in such a manner? Well, his sister did get fairly bitter when she got angry, but he never imagined she could react as such towards her own children.

"So on that note, Yashamaru, you will be the one to take care of Gaara, and you will raise him however I tell you to. Is that understood?" Yashamaru looked up towards the Kazekage and nodded his head, still pondering the Kazekage's words about his sister. He had no reason to disbelieve them. Despite how much of a bastard the man was, Yashamaru had never known him to lie. Though unbeknownst to Yashamaru, this was entirely thanks to the Kazekage's tendency to rewrite the truth.

"I understand, Kazekage-sama." Yashamaru answered after his brief pause.

"Good. You're dismissed."

-3 years ago-

Yashamaru watched with a false smile as Gaara played with a stuffed bear, yet another toy his father had given him in place of legitimate affection. He had a suspicion that the Yondaime Kazekage was physically incapable of feeling love or affection for another living thing. It certainly explained the incident with Karura.

'Damn it, I need to stop thinking about that.' Yashamaru chastised himself. He didn't want to dwell on his sister's premature death, especially since the cause of it was sitting no more than a meter away, having his stuffed bear make a castle out of that sand that followed him everywhere. Yashamaru had asked the Kazekage about that strange sand when he had first noticed it. He had simply smiled, and said it was the spirit of his sister within the sand.

'She protects him, even after her death. Why? Why, sister? He came into this world by taking your life, and yet you still protect him.' Yashamaru wondered. No matter how much he tried to care for the boy, to love him like an uncle should, he always came back to that. If it had not been for Gaara, his sister would still be alive. She had died hating him, giving him that abominable name in the process. How could he love such a child? How could he not resent him, when even his mother had despised him?

"Yashamaru, will you play with me?" The sound of Gaara's voice brought him out of his thoughts with a bit of a jump. He quickly refocused, seeing the young redhead standing in front of him, holding his bear in one hand and presenting a second toy with the other. The sand that was his mother, Yashamaru's sister, seemed to hang back, resting at the boy's ankles like a faithful pet.

"Alright, but only for a little while." Yashamaru responded, once again bringing up his false smile. Gaara smiled in kind, handing Yashamaru the toy before getting back onto the ground to continue his playing. Yashamaru could only sigh inwardly as he began to play with the child, wondering where he was getting the strength to humor him.

-o-o-

Gaara's Prologue

-o-o-

Nights were always cold in the desert village of Sunagakure, much like the days were always excessively hot. It was the way it had always been. The scorching heat of the day would make way for the near freezing cold at night. Here, it was always one extreme to the next. There was little space for the in between. Even in her life, that was the way it was. When she was younger, her life was perfect. At least, as far as she could tell. She had two siblings that would play with her, a father that gave her whatever she wanted, and everything seemed great. But that all changed as soon as she was old enough to venture out of her home, as soon as her father had her uncle start taking care of her. It was like a desert day becoming a desert night. Everyone she saw as she walked down the road of Sunagakure looked at her in complete fear. Everywhere she turned, people flinched, as if being caught in her line of sight had hurt them. For the last four years, that fear was all she knew. Only Yashamaru seemed to care. She rarely got to see her siblings anymore, and it seemed they had both learned to fear her as well. Even her father began avoiding her. Yashamaru was the only comfort she had, like a small oasis in an endless desert of sand. As she watched the sun slowly begin to rise above the horizon, she wondered when her life would change back to the way it was, when night would become day again. She was tired of the cold.

Gaara sat against the railing of a balcony of her home in Sunagakure, watching the sun continue to rise. She didn't know how to feel about it. She couldn't sleep, couldn't allow herself to sleep, thus the nights were always lonely, as she could do little more than sit around and wait for the sun to rise. However, the days never truly brought a reprieve from that loneliness. The people would wake up, go about their business, but none of them dared look her way. Every now and again, she'd get up the nerve to approach other children as they played their games, hoping that they might allow her to join them, but they never did. Honestly, she didn't know what was worse, the loneliness of the night, or the loneliness of the day. Both made her feel...something...inside. A feeling in her heart she couldn't describe.

"Gaara-sama, are you up here?" She heard Yashamaru's voice say, bringing the young girl out of her thoughts as she sat up and looked towards her caretaker.

"I'm over here, Yashamaru." Gaara answered, climbing back over the railing as she did so. Yashamaru was always so considerate. He would always wake up just as the sun would begin to rise, so that Gaara didn't have to be alone once it became morning. At least, that's how Gaara saw it. She hoped that was the reason, since it made that strange feeling in her heart subside.

"Come inside and get your breakfast. Your father will be coming by later to continue your training, and you don't want to practice on an empty stomach, do you?" Yashamaru asked, causing Gaara to smile a bit as she shook her head.

"That's a good boy. Now come on." Yashamaru began to head back inside, not seeing the expression cross Gaara's face as she was called a 'good boy.' Gaara knew better than to correct her uncle. Her father had made it abundantly clear when she was still only a year old that she could never tell anyone that she was a girl. She never knew why, and her father refused to explain it. He only said he would be very angry with her if she ever did, and that he'd be forced to do some unpleasant things to whoever found out. Gaara had no desire to have her father angry with her, so she had been sure to play along.

"Have you been practicing, Gaara?" Her father asked, looking down at Gaara with his usual expression. It wasn't the fear others showed her, but it definitely was not the kind of look she could see the other father's in the village give their children. It didn't look like hate. She was familiar with hate. It was more neutral, but still generally unhappy.

"Uh huh. I'm getting better at Shunshin no jutsu and Kawarimi," Gaara began, about to go into more detail about the ninjutsu techniques her father had taught her before a hard glare from the man in question silenced her.

"I don't care about that. Have you been practicing with the sand?" He asked, his face still hard. Gaara's face fell a little. She had hoped he would have continued the normal ninjutsu training. She was good at ninjutsu. Her sand was too rebellious for her. It did what she wanted usually, but it was temperamental, and would act out on its own. Even now, she could feel its desire to attack her father as it sat coiled near her feet, preparing to strike. She was trying to will it to stay where it was, hoping to finally impose control over it. For the time being, it seemed to listen.

"I still can't control it very well." Gaara muttered, too ashamed to look at her father's face. She was fairly certain she knew what his expression was anyway.

"Show me what you can do with it." He demanded. Instantly, Gaara could feel her control over the sand at her feet completely crumble. Like a dog off its leash, the sand lashed out towards her father, eager to hurt him, wanting to taste his blood. He backhanded it almost nonchalantly, scattering the sands across the yard.

"Not on me, you idiot." Her father growled out, obviously annoyed. Gaara had almost apologized, but decided against it. If she admitted it was an accident, he'd only be even more disappointed in her lack of control. Instead she nodded, drawing her attention towards a training dummy that was set up a little ways away. She ignored her own sand in favor of the plentiful sand that made up the landscape of Sunagakure. It required more concentration, more chakra, and was generally harder to use, but she was trying to impress her father, and having the sand defy her was not impressive.

'Please, listen to me...' Gaara thought, concentrating on the sands as they shifted and flowed towards the dummy. She raised her hand towards it while keeping her other in a seal near her face, concentrating as it coiled around the dummy's legs and worked its way up, soon encasing it completely.

Her father watched closely as she focused and clenched her fist tightly. The sand rippled before collapsing inward, the distinct sound of wood shattering clearly audible through the shell. Satisfied, Gaara dropped her concentration and the sand with it, revealing the damaged dummy beneath.

'Hmm. Effective, but it lacks power. Such a move would break the ribcage, perhaps rupture a few organs. Crippling, yes, but not fatal. Even an unskilled ninja would be able to survive long enough to counterattack. That's not good enough, especially after 6 years to work on control.' The Kazekage thought to himself, observing the technique. He noticed Gaara looking up at him expectantly and directed a questioning look in response.

"Is that all?" Gaara flinched at that. It hadn't been impressive enough. Frantically, she wracked her brain for something she knew she could do with the sand, something that would be impressive enough to satisfy her father.

"I can do..." Gaara began, concentrating on her chakra as the sand beneath her feet began to twist and move, "...this!" A bit of sweat fell from her brow as the sand began crawling up her body, under her clothes. It quickly spread all over, down her arms and over her hands as it worked its way up her neck. It passed her face, leaving openings for her eyes, nose and mouth before completely closing over her head, concealing her hair.

So far, the Kazekage was unimpressed, however he rose an eyebrow in interest when the sand began to change. It shifted, flattened. It changed color, changed shape, changed texture. Soon, Gaara looked just like he always did, with sand even forming new hair that looked as genuine as the hairs on his own head. A complete covering of sand, that looked like a real body? If he had not seen it himself, even he would not have been able to notice that Gaara was covered in a layer of sand. He was even looking for some sign or indication of the sand, but saw nothing to give it away.

"Impressive..." Kazekage muttered, kneeling down to get a close look at Gaara's face, looking for telltale signs. And, there it was, as he suspected. A barely visible seam just inside the nostrils, another at the ear canal, and two more around Gaara's eyes. They were well hidden, and anyone close enough to see them would be as good as dead.

Though as impressive as it was, the Kazekage couldn't help but feel it was superfluous.

"...But worthless." Gaara had been smiling slightly after the praise her father had given her a moment ago, only to have it fall off her face as he finished his thought. She couldn't help but feel a little frustrated. Nothing she did was ever good enough for him. She could feel her sand begin to stir in response to her frustration, wanting to strike her father once again. She managed to control it, however. Another random attack would do nothing to impress him.

"Your Shield of Sand makes you essentially invincible. Almost nothing would be able to penetrate it. What purpose could this...Armor of Sand serve?" Her father asked. Gaara couldn't answer that question. She didn't know. She figured out how to perform the technique on an excessively cold night, and had covered herself in sand to keep out the cold.

"It keeps me warm." It was the only thing she could think to say.

Her father obviously didn't think it was a good enough answer.

"You are Sabaku no Gaara! You have the Shukaku Ichibi sealed within you, and have the ability to control sand to your will because of it. You are a weapon, Gaara. That is your purpose in life. You are a tool of the village to be used as deemed necessary. You are the fourth Jinchuuriki of the Sand, and the least capable. Do you have any idea how much I had to sacrifice to create the power you now possess? The power you clearly aren't capable of using?" Kazekage growled, half turning away from his child. "Perhaps if you weren't born a woman, you wouldn't be so useless."

Gaara froze in place at those words, finding it hard to breathe. That strange feeling in her heart was back, worse than ever before. That...that had been the first time her father had recognized her real gender, had referred to her by what she really was. It made her want to cry.

"Are you crying?" Her father asked, a tone in his voice she couldn't identify. She shook her head in the negative, but didn't dare say 'no.' She didn't know if she could speak without letting a sob out.

An explosion sounded right beside her face, causing her to stumble back in surprise. Her father had attempted to strike her, but the sand had stopped his hand a few inches from her cheek. Even though the slap hadn't connected, it served its intended purpose anyway.

"Weapons do not cry." Kazekage insisted, an edge in his eyes Gaara had never seen before. "Ninja do not cry." He continued, his tone becoming serious, his body practically shaking in restraint. "Boys. Do. Not. Cry."

"Do you understand me, _boy?_" Gaara just nodded fiercely, doing her best to keep her eyes from watering as much as they wanted to. Luckily, her father quickly turned away, intent on leaving.

"Leave that Sand Armor on as long as you are physically capable." He said, his back turned. "I will be incredibly disappointed with you if you do not."

Despite her better judgment, despite the fact she knew she should just agree and let him leave, Gaara felt compelled to voice protest.

"But it's heavy. It's hard to move." She managed to say it without the tears betraying her tone, but it still sounded pathetic to her anyway.

"Consider it a punishment for your failure," Her father said, before turning to look at her, "As both a ninja, and a son." With that, he walked away, leaving Gaara to her tears.

-o-o-

It was night once again, and once again Gaara was left with only her thoughts and the sands to keep her company. Her whole body ached, sore from wearing the armor of sand all day, but she wore it anyway. She didn't dare disappoint her father further. She'd wear it her entire life, if necessary. As she slowly made her way down the empty streets of Sunagakure, sluggishly lifting her legs and moving on despite the protest of her muscles, she idly wondered if this was what pain felt like. The unpleasant soreness in her muscles was the closest thing to an injury she had ever received. Was this pain? Somehow, she felt like it wasn't. It didn't seem...severe enough. Despite the odd feeling in her body, she wouldn't quite describe it as being hurt. She was merely tired, not injured. Surely, pain was worse than this.

Gaara was pulled from her thoughts for a moment, hearing a sound she wasn't accustomed to hearing at night. The voices of multiple kids, probably around her age, carried across the wind towards where she was standing. Curious, she followed it, slowly making her way through the sand covered streets towards a small playground she knew was nearby, but rarely gathered the courage to visit. Her feet sank a bit with every step, a sign of how heavy the armor truly made her, but she ignored it. Instead, she kept walking, the voices only getting louder as she approached.

"Pass it! Pass it here!" A boy shouted out to his teammates, quickly getting a ball kicked his way as he ran through the sand towards a large, contained net on the other side of the field. Gaara watched curiously as he kicked the ball with all his might, watched it sail through the air towards the net, and watched it get caught in the hands of a boy standing in front of it.

This was a game of some kind, she was sure of it. What was it called again? Football? Yes, that's it. Apparently the idea was to kick the ball into one of the big nets, and everyone else was trying to stop you from succeeding. Gaara, never having anyone to play with, had never been able to learn any games that had to be played with a lot of people. So, with little else to do, and fairly pleased with the late night distraction from her thoughts, she decided to sit and watch, and learn how the game was played.

A nearby swing was as good a place as any to sit, and other than a brief groan from the chain, it seemed more than sturdy enough to support the weight of her and the armor of sand. So, with adequate seating found, Gaara drew her attention towards the game.

"Pass it!"

"Shoot it!"

"Tackle him!" The boys kept shouting instructions to each other as they played. Maybe they didn't really know how to play either? No, that didn't seem right. Every boy would say something to every other boy at some point or another, and occasionally addressed all of them at once. Maybe it was encouragement? It was something completely foreign to Gaara, but she had seen it in others. Yes, that seemed right. However, so far, the game seemed fairly hectic. She was having trouble keeping track of what was apparently going on.

"GOAL! WHOO!" One of the boys had apparently managed to get the ball into one of the nets, causing a brief celebration amongst half the boys on the field. Weird, wasn't it a free for all? The next round began and she quickly realized that her initial interpretation of the game had been off. The boys that had the ball always seemed to pass it to the same people. Occasionally, one of the boys they hadn't been passing it to would manage to get it away from them, and then that boy would only pass it to others that the first group had not been including. Gaara quickly deduced that it must have been a team game. Two teams. Each one of the nets probably belonged to one of the teams as well. She figured they were supposed to get the ball into the net being guarded by the other team.

'That doesn't seem very complicated.' Gaara thought to herself. Just kick the ball into the net guarded by the other team, while trying to prevent them from doing the same with the net you were guarding. Considering the name of the game and the way all the boys had been playing so far, She assumed you were only allowed to use your feet to move the ball. However, the net protectors were both using their hands, so they probably weren't included in that rule.

"Hey, he just hit it with his head." Gaara said to herself, quietly. One of the boys on the first team had shot the ball towards the net, only to have a boy on the other team smash his head into it in mid flight, sending it towards some of his teammates. At first, Gaara was curious about whether or not that was cheating. When no one seemed to put up a fuss about the maneuver, she wondered if head butting a ball in flight like that had hurt.

"Shoot!" One of the boys called out, smashing his foot into the ball with all his might. He had apparently misjudged the direction and power he had used, however. Rather than rocketing towards the net, the ball almost went straight up, higher than the nearby buildings. At just that moment, a gust of wind blew across the desert, altering the ball in flight just enough to get it to land on a rooftop behind the net.

"Ah man, now what?" One of the boy's complained, looking up at the ball a good distance above them. "We haven't learned Kabe Noboru no jutsu yet."

As the boys watched, the ball shifted, slowly rising off the roof as if of its own will before floating back down, far slower than gravity should have allowed. It only took them a few moments to realize it was being supported by sand, and that it wasn't floating towards them.

Gaara caught the ball easily, a little pleased with herself as well. The sand had actually listened to her for once, without much defiance. Plus, this was a perfect opportunity to interact with other kids. As she held out the ball towards the boys, in an obvious attempt to return it to them, she hoped they would show her some kindness. Or, at least, some tolerance. Even if they took the ball without a word and went back to their game as if she wasn't even there, she would have been happy.

But they didn't react nearly that favorably.

"G...Gaara..." One of the boy stammered out, looking at her with those eyes all the villagers reserved for her. Those eyes filled with fear and surprise. She hated seeing those eyes. It made that weird feeling in her heart get worse.

"It's Sabaku no Gaara!" Another one said, and suddenly the entire field of boys were ready to flee, their game forgotten. Gaara almost considered throwing the ball to them and running away, hoping that maybe they would return to their game if she wasn't around. But truthfully, she didn't care about the game. She just wanted to be around other people. She didn't want to be alone.

"Wait, don't leave!" She cried out, just as the boys began to run. She reached out for them, not wanting them to leave her alone again. The sand reacted, reaching out as well. However, its reach was far greater than hers, and it had a tendency to hold on to things a little too tightly.

"No! Let me go! Let me go!" The boy she had caught hold of with her sand was crying out, desperately trying to escape the hold on his leg. However, the more he struggled, the more he irritated the sand. Gaara didn't want to hurt him, she just didn't want him to leave. Her sand was escaping her control again, lashing out violently as it always did.

The sand struck, but failed to connect with the fallen boy. A body appeared in front of him protectively, causing the sand to smash against this new target like a wave breaking against a cliff.

"Gaara-sama, calm yourself!" Gaara froze at Yashamaru's voice, or perhaps it was the blood she could see dripping from his open wounds that made her stop. Whatever it was, the sands responded, falling away and returning to its place by her side. Gaara's eyes fell towards her feet as they met the disappointment in Yashamaru's gaze. She had seen more than enough of that from her father. She didn't need it from her uncle.

"Leave, quickly." Yashamaru said, glancing behind him towards the fallen boy. He didn't even hesitate as he stood back up and quickly fled, despite an obvious limp in the leg Gaara had grabbed. With the boy out of the way, Yashamaru turned his eyes back to Gaara, seeing a look of shame on the boy's face before he glanced away.

"Come, Gaara-sama. Let's go back home." Yashamaru said in an even tone. Gaara simply nodded in response.

-o-o-

It was a picture of her mother. At least, that's what they told her. Gaara had never known her mother. But every now and again, she'd come in here and look at the picture of her that Yashamaru kept. She looked like a kind woman. Whenever Gaara looked at her photo, she would get a strange feeling from her sand. It helped her to forget that strange feeling in her heart. Even for a short while, it helped her feel...content.

'I wish you were still alive, mother.' Gaara thought to herself, looking at the smiling woman in the picture frame. She looked a lot like her uncle, Yashamaru. The resemblance was almost uncanny. In that instant, Gaara's face fell as she imagined the woman in the picture bleeding from open wounds, like Yashamaru had been. It made that feeling in her heart come back all of a sudden.

Curiously, Gaara reached for a small letter opener sitting on the table. Grasping it firmly in one hand, she lifted her opposite wrist and held the blade near it. Already she could sense the unease in her sand, the tension that was building in it. In defiance, Gaara thrust the blade down towards her wrist as fast as she could, but completely failed to restrain her sand as it positioned itself between the blade and her wrist in the blink of an eye.

"It's no use..." Gaara muttered to herself, seeing the sand was much too quick for her. Its desire to protect her was too strong for her to overcome. The sand simply wouldn't allow her to be harmed.

"Gaara-sama, please don't do things like that in front of me." Yashamaru's voice caused Gaara to jump slightly and turn around, seeing her uncle standing behind her with a sullen look on his face. Immediately, Gaara's eyes were drawn to her uncle's bandages and her face fell again.

"Yashamaru...injuries hurt, don't they?" Gaara asked, not actually meeting her uncle's eyes.

"Oh, this?" Yashamaru muttered, pointing to the bandage on his head, "It hurts, but it's only a scratch."

"...What does pain...feel like?" Gaara asked. It was a question that was constantly on her mind. Pain was a concept that simply eluded her. She had never felt it, so when people talked about feeling pain, she simply couldn't comprehend what it meant. She had unintentionally caused pain in so many people, but she had no way of knowing how severe that actually was.

"The sand protects me from even small cuts, so I don't know what pain really is. I've always wondered what it's like..." Gaara explained further. Yashamaru looked confused for a moment, or maybe uncomfortable. It looked like he was having trouble thinking of an answer.

"Pain is...hard to explain, Gaara-sama. It...well, hurts. It's like a feeling of unpleasantness, or unease. Well, pain is the body's way of telling you that something is wrong, so I guess you could call it that, too. A feeling that something is wrong. A bad feeling." Yashamaru rambled for a little bit, with Gaara nodding along with undivided attention. Finally, he paused, not sure if he explained it adequately or not.

"I'm not explaining it very well. To put it simply, it's a bad condition to be in." Yashamaru added with an embarrassed chuckle.

"Do you hate me, then?" Gaara asked, dropping her gaze once more.

No. Of course not. I could never hate you. Such answers and more came to him in that instant but none of them would form on his lips. They were the obvious answers, the correct answers.

They were lies.

"In life," He began his non-response, "People often get hurt, or hurt others. But its hard to hate them for that reason." The words had actually been distasteful as they left his mouth, but it was the only thing he could think to say that was technically true that wouldn't upset the child. Yashamaru didn't hate Gaara for injuring him. He hated him for much more important reasons. But it simply wasn't appropriate to tell the boy of this hate. He had to pretend it didn't exist.

"Thank you, Yashamaru." Gaara said with a smile, which only made Yashamaru feel worse. "I think I understand what pain is now."

"I think I'm in pain." Gaara continued, lifting her hand to her heart. That feeling that was always there, that unpleasantness. She had a name for it now. Pain. It seemed appropriate.

"I'm always hurting here," Gaara said, still gripping her chest, "It doesn't bleed, but it still hurts."

Yashamaru's face fell a bit at that. Silently, he knelt before Gaara and took the letter opener before slowly dragging it across his middle finger. He ignored the sharp pain and let the wound freely drip blood for a few moments before raising his gaze to meet Gaara's eyes.

"Physical wounds will bleed, and they look like they hurt a lot. But the pain goes away quickly, and they heal faster with medicine." Yashamaru explained, slowly bandaging the wound on his finger.

"Emotional wounds are more serious. They are much harder to heal. They don't bleed, and there is no ointment to heal them faster, but they hurt just the same, and the pain may never go away." Yashamaru paused briefly in order to stand up before looking towards Gaara again.

"There's only one thing that can heal heartache. However, as inconvenient as it may be, you can only receive it from other people." Yashamaru explained.

"What is it?" Gaara asked curiously.

"Love." Her uncle replied.

"Love?"

"Love is the devotion you feel for the people that are precious to you, and is expressed by caring for and protecting those people. Just like my sister." Yashamaru began, turning towards the picture on the table, "My sister loves you a great deal, Gaara-sama. Shukaku is a being of great power used for combat, but the Shield of Sand is separate from him. That automatic defense that protects you is the love of your mother. Her spirit lives on in the sand to protect you from harm."

'Mother...' Gaara thought, concentrating on the feeling coming from her sand. It was comforting, caring, like it always had been. Yes, that was the spirit of her mother. She understood that now.

"Thank you, Yashamaru, for stopping me earlier." Gaara said, smiling slightly at her uncle.

"You're very welcome, Gaara-sama. After all, you're very special to me." Yashamaru replied. At that, he stood and headed towards the door. At that moment, a thought occurred to Gaara, and she quickly turned towards her retreating uncle.

"Yashamaru, I have a favor to ask." She began.

"Huh? What is it?" Yashamaru asked, curiously.

"May I have some ointments?"

-o-o-

The weight of the armor made it difficult to run. Plus it had been taxing her chakra all day, and that alone was tiring. Despite all this, Gaara still found herself running cheerfully through the street, heading towards her destination with a bag of ointment in hand. She felt happier at that moment than she had in a long while. She had decided to make a friend, to visit the boy she had hurt earlier and give him ointments to feel better. If she showed that she was sorry, and offered help, she could prove that she wasn't as bad as all the kids thought she was. Maybe she'd finally be acknowledged by another person.

It was with these thoughts in mind that she found herself standing on the stoop of a small house, breathing heavily from the strain. Slowly, she lifted her hand to knock on the door. With that, all she could do was wait.

After a few moments, she could hear someone moving on the other side of the door. It slid open slowly, revealing the boy from earlier in the day. Gaara held the bag of ointment out at the sight of him.

"I'm sorry about earlier. It hurt, didn't it? This is some ointment. You can use it if yo-"

"Go Away! Monster!" The boy insisted, slamming the door. The sound of him locking it and running off were lost on Gaara's ears. All she could hear was the word 'monster' echoing in her mind. The look in his eyes was all too familiar. He looked at her in the same way they all did. The same way they always did.

'Why?' She thought to herself, stumbling back from the door. Her body suddenly felt so sluggish. Exhausted. The armor was stifling. It felt like it was crushing her now.

'I don't understand...' Her heart hurt so much. She practically collapsed in the street as she ever so slowly made her way away from the boy's house, the bag of ointments forgotten on the steps. Cracks began to form all across her body as she staggered away, the armor buckling. She couldn't keep it up.

'No! I won't let it break.' She thought forcefully, stopping momentarily and concentrating. The cracks stopped spreading then, and an agonizing silence followed for a few moments before they began to recede. A few moments later, her body was once more unmarred, and only the closest of inspections would have been able to identify the presence of the armor.

Her steps became more stable, but her mind was still in turmoil. She barely noticed the way the sand at her feet thrashed and churned, coiling and uncoiling in a threatening fashion. She simply stalked through the village back towards her home, barely paying attention to anything around her. It wasn't until she bumped into a man drunkenly meandering down the road that she even noticed he was there.

"Oi, watch where you're going, brat! What do you-" The man slurred angrily. His words died on his lips the moment he recognized her, though. His eyes said it all.

'Why? Why do they all look at me like that? Why do they always look at me with those eyes?' The sand barely hesitated. She couldn't have stopped it even if she tried. It was upon him in an instant, like a pack of jackals on an injured lamb.

He was screaming. He'd been screaming for a few minutes now, she realized. But she didn't care. He wasn't a man anymore, he was the outlet for her frustrations. Gaara simply released everything into the sands, letting it do whatever it wanted with that pain and sorrow.

Finally, Gaara's mind began to settle and the sand began to calm. He had stopped screaming at some point. She wasn't entirely sure when. There wasn't much left of him to look at, either. Briefly, she wondered why there was so little blood on the ground. She felt like he should have had more.

"What happened here?"

"What happened to this guy? He's been torn apart!"

People were beginning to gather as she walked away, but she paid them no mind. Her attention was instead drawn to an unexpected figure leaning against a nearby pillar. It was her father, looking at her with eyes she knew all too well. These eyes were different from those of the villagers. They held no fear. No horror. Just anger. Just disappointment. Disgust. In that moment, his eyes said more to her than any words could have. Gaara averted her gaze, continuing towards home. She could still feel his eyes staring into her back. She didn't need to see them to know the distaste they held. The only thing that kept her from crying was knowing he'd only hate her more for it.

The Kazekage stood and watched Gaara walk away with his mind already made up. It was clear to him that the girl was a failure with no self control. For the good of the village, he only had one choice.

'Yashamaru needs to handle this.' He thought to himself.

-o-o-

Once again, Gaara found herself sitting on the edge of the balcony of her home, looking out over the village. The desert was still a place of extremes, and the incredible heat of the day had long since been replaced by the frigid cold of night. And despite the warmth the armor of sand provided, Gaara could feel that coldness sinking into her body just as a shiver crawled up her spine.

"How come...only I am such a monster?" She muttered, looking down at her hands, feeling the sand of the armor rub across her skin, "Why am I the only one who has to live this way?"

"It's not fair...Yashamaru." Gaara could feel the tears at the edge of her eyes, but did her best to deny them. Her heart hurt so much, she didn't know what to do.

Gaara barely noticed a sudden motion behind her, but flinched at the sound of a heavy impact against her sand. As she turned, the sand moved, intercepting another volley of kunai.

"Why...Why me..." She demanded, seeing her attacker as the sand began to fall. "Always me. Only me!"

Her anger began to rise as the assassin released another volley of Kunai. She could feel the sand tense up and knew it was ready to strike. Raising one hand up in a seal, Gaara gestured with the other and the sand eagerly complied. The Kunai were caught in mid air and the sand kept going, taking the assassin full in the chest. Without hesitation, Gaara clenched her fist, feeling the sand collapse in on its victim with some degree of satisfaction.

"Why?" Gaara shouted, glaring down at the masked assassin. Her gaze faltered slightly, however, as she saw a bandage on his ring finger.

'It...it can't be...' Gaara thought, approaching the downed assassin slowly. A cough racked his body as Gaara pulled his mask away.

"Impressive, Gaara-sama..." Yashamaru managed to say, despite the pain. Gaara was beyond words, beyond any response. It hurt too much.

"AAAAAAAHHHHH!" In that moment, Gaara's armor shattered. Her heart and mind simply hurt too much to keep it up. She fell to her knees, unable to do anything to stop the tears.

"Why...Why? Yashamaru, why did you..." Gaara couldn't control her voice through the tears and openly sobbed, staring at the dying body of her uncle with disbelieving eyes.

"It was an order."

"Eh?"

"I was ordered to kill you... by your father...Kazekage-sama..." Yashamaru coughed up some blood after that. His ribs were broken and he was pretty sure his left lung had collapsed. He didn't have much longer. He could only pray his gambit would work.

"Father...Why? Why would he..."

"You were born to be a weapon...to be possessed by Shukaku of the sands...but, you can't control his power...You've shown that...you can't be trusted..." Yashamaru struggled to speak, trying his best to ignore the pain. He still needed more time. The explosive tags he had covered himself in wouldn't go off for a few more minutes. He needed to keep Gaara's attention, keep him close, until it was time.

"Your existence is a threat to the entire village and everything we live for. We simply...can't let you live..." A few bloody coughs shook through his body as he spoke, but Yashamaru did his best to ignore them.

"So...you had no choice. You only did it because father-" Gaara began, a bit of hope building in her heart.

"No. You're mistaken. I was ordered, but...I could have declined." Gaara's heart sank again as she watched her uncle turn ever so subtly towards her.

"Deep down inside...I've always...hated you...hated you for being born, for taking my sister away from me." Yashamaru said through the occasional cough.

"I tried my best to humor you, to think...of you as her memento...but I couldn't. She never wanted you...she was sacrificed...to Shukaku...and died cursing you and the village." Gaara was too stunned, too horrified to do or say much of anything as Yashamaru continued. She could only sit, cry, and listen.

"You mother gave you...your name...'A demon who loves only himself.' Love only yourself...fight only for yourself...she gave you that name, not out of love or caring...but to hope that you would live long enough...to carry out...her grudge...And...to let the world know that, you were never loved!" Yashamaru's body shook again with another violent fit of coughs. He was nearing the end of his rope, but that didn't matter. He could feel the heat building on his chest from the tags. They were ready.

"This is it..." Yashamaru muttered, pulling open his vest. He couldn't let the vest slow the blast down. He needed all the advantage he could get. 'Please die.'

The explosion was deafening. She barely noticed it. In the few fractions of a second it took for the concussive shockwave of the blast to travel from Yashamaru to Gaara, the shield of sand had already moved, forming an impenetrable cocoon around the young girl. The blast hit the sand and rebounded, deepening the crater in the floor and wall and thoroughly obliterating whatever may have remained of Gaara's uncle. The only thing that left any indication that Yashamaru had existed at all was the fine red mist that was being blown away by the wind.

Gaara sat, hunched on her knees, tears flowing freely from her eyes, and screamed. Something inside her just snapped, and all the pain and sorrow came flowing out like water from a broken dam. Her head hurt...it hurt so much...She wanted to cut it out, cut the pain right out of her body. The sand rippled and shifted, flowing inward towards the screaming girl, condensing into sharp points that smashed into her forehead and dug into her skin. Cutting, carving.

As Gaara stopped screaming, the sand came to an abrupt stop and fell away from her, collecting around her feet again. Blood was dripping down her face, into her eye and mouth, but she didn't care. She had done what needed to be done.

"Gaara...My name...is Gaara." She muttered, lifting her hand towards the fresh wound in her forehead, the character for 'love.' "I finally understand."

As Gaara walked away from the crater, the discarded sand from her armor obediently followed, flowing up her legs and once again coating her entire body. She had disgracefully let it drop, but she wasn't about to let that happen again. Never again. Not until she could prove its use. Not until she showed her father that her techniques were not meaningless.

"I'll love only myself, fight for myself. I'll show him that I'm not useless. I am strong. Not even uncle could kill me." Gaara muttered to herself, reaching the edge of the balcony and looking out towards the Kazekage's office, towards her father.

'Send all the assassins you want, father. I'll kill them all. I'll prove to you that I'm not weak. I'm not useless. I'll be the greatest weapon the sand has ever seen.' She knew now what had to be done. She needed to train. All night, all day. She couldn't sleep, so she'd train instead. She'd become strong all on her own. She didn't need anyone else, she wouldn't trust anyone else. After all, she was alone.

She'd always be alone.

-o-o-

To be continued

Author's Notes:

If there's one thing this chapter has shown me, it's how much I hate rehashing the manga. It makes me feel like an idiot. So from here on out, I'm changing as much as I can manage. Naruto's a whole different person, so don't expect anything to turn out the way it did the first time

around.

Next chapter will focus on Naruto again, then the chapter after that will be Gaara, and after that it'll be a little bit of everybody from there on out.

Ryo-Wolf


	3. Kitsune

Disclaimer: Naruto is the property of whoever it was that made it.

Author's Notes:

After reading recent chapters of the Naruto manga, I have this to say:

Fuck Madara.

That is all.

--

Naruto sighed and sluggishly changed his position so that he was leaning on his right arm as opposed to his left. The academy had never been a place that one could call thrilling, but the lesson they were currently covering made what they usually did look like a worldwide war.

'Strategy? Do strong ninja really need to learn strategy? Strategy is obvious: If it burns, burn it. If it doesn't burn, try harder.' Naruto thought to himself in exasperation. Sure, he understood the theory behind why it was a good idea to be a good strategist, but it didn't really apply when 'reduce your opponent to ashes' trumped any other plan you or he could think of.

With another sigh, he slumped forward until he was laying on his desk, catching sight of a fly buzzing around the head of the blonde girl sitting in front of him. It was somewhat sad when the activities of an insect were more interesting than what he was currently doing. The fly left the blonde alone and flew off towards the other side of the class, quickly becoming too far away for him to see anymore.

"I want to burn something." Naruto muttered to himself, the dullness of the lesson bringing to mind the far more interesting activity of setting things on fire. He could practically feel his flames itching at his skin, burning just below the surface. His fire wanted free, and he saw little reason to keep it contained, except for the damn promise he made to the Hokage. There were too many leaves here. He couldn't let himself burn just yet.

The fly returned and buzzed right past Naruto's ear. Sending an irritating sensation across his face and down his neck. He narrowed his eyes, spotting the fly buzzing about and making a return pass. It got within a few inches of him before it simply fell out of the sky and hit the desk beside him, accompanied by a small puff of smoke and a barely audible sizzle. He didn't stop there, though. He continued to glare at the fallen insect until it literally burst into flame, combusting and burning out almost in the same instant. It was little more than a flash before it was gone. No one else even seemed to notice it had happened.

Well, except for the kid in the sunglasses. Naruto couldn't tell if he was just looking at him or glaring with the dark glasses covering his eyes, but he didn't particularly care. He simply ignored the other boy and brushed the ash that was once a fly off his desk.

"Alright, students. That's all the time we have for today. Tomorrow we'll be doing a test on the Henge no Jutsu, so be ready for that." Mizuki-sensei announced as everyone else began to get up and leave. Naruto rose as well, stretching a bit in the process to get the tiredness out of his joints. Finally, he could get out of that boring lesson.

And set something on fire. That fly hadn't been nearly satisfying enough.

A young girl at the front of the class watched the blonde boy stand and walk out the door before slowly rising and making her own exit. He was a strange boy, always sitting quietly in the back of the room, drawing no real attention to himself. She figured he was just too shy to stand out, just like her.

Hinata typically was not the type to do what she was about to do, but she was feeling uncharacteristically brave that day. It was her 8th birthday, after all, and 8 had always been Hinata's favorite number. She figured that today, just maybe, she'd be lucky enough to find a friend she could talk to. It was with this thought in mind that she began to follow the boy as he left the academy walls and headed off towards the forest.

Naruto moved quickly and with a purpose as he walked through the streets of Konohagakure. He knew exactly where he was going, exactly where to find what he was looking for. There had been a storm the day before, and several lightning strikes touching down within the forests around the village. He had seen one in particular from the window of his small apartment that had felled a tree just outside one of the training grounds. It was the perfect choice.

Of course, the ground was still wet from the recent rain, and even now the sky was overcast with clouds eager to let out another torrent. It wouldn't matter much, though. His fire was special. No amount of water could put it out if he didn't want it to.

Even so, it still made the process more annoying.

As he moved further and further away from the parts of the village Hinata was familiar with, her nerve began to shrink further and further with the distance. It seemed like he was moving towards one of the training grounds. Maybe he was going to practice for the test tomorrow? Yeah, that seemed likely. That's probably what it was!

He stopped suddenly, near a tree that had fallen over, causing Hinata to duck behind a nearby bush. It didn't matter much to her, though. Her eyes were special. With a little bit of concentration, the veins in her face began to bulge slightly with the effort she was putting into her eyes, allowing her to see through the bush like it wasn't even there.

For now, Hinata felt content to just watch.

Naruto grinned slightly as he saw the tree, a bit waterlogged from the recent rain but still clearly dead. It didn't even have any leaves on its branches, which certainly made things easier for him. With little hesitation, he held his hand out towards the fallen tree, the skin on his fingers beginning to crack and sizzle before his entire limb simply burst into flame. He chuckled upon seeing it, his skin burning away and replacing itself only to burn again. He had other things to burn though. With that in mind, he placed his burning hand against the tree, willing it to follow suit.

It was a few crackles at first, followed by plumes of smoke and steam as the wood began to burn despite the water that was trapped within it. Then, finally, it went up in flames. Slow at first, but soon the entirety of the tree was a bonfire. Once it was clear that it was going to stay aflame, Naruto removed his hand and took a few steps back, wanting to take it all in.

He must have been standing there for hours, simply watching it burn and crumble. Ashes. A fine, blackened powder was all that would remain of what was once a great thing. There was something to be appreciated in that. An absolute truth. No matter what you are, no matter how great and big you may be, all it took to bring you down was a little fire. Burning brought all things together. For when you thought about it, all ashes were the same, indecipherable from one another. One pile may have once been a tree, while another may have been a man, but the ashes were all the same.

Naruto grinned slightly as he watched the last few embers of life burn away at the fallen tree, tracing lines of orange fire briefly across the surface of the wood before it crumbled into the ever growing pile of ash. It was a beautiful thing, it really was. Mesmerizing. Though it was hard to appreciate it with someone staring at him like that.

"Who's there?" Naruto called out with a hint of irritation in his voice, never taking his eyes away from his fire. There was still burning to watch, as the tree was not yet done. It would be soon, though. His ashes grew while the tree disappeared, and soon there wouldn't be a tree anymore.

His only response was a squeak, followed by the sound of someone tripping over something and franticly scooting away. They were surprised that he noticed them, it seemed. He was a little surprised himself, as he typically didn't pay attention to outside annoyances.

"Are you a leaf?" Naruto asked, turning from the tree as the last of it burned away and turning all his irritation on the girl watching him. In an instant, she went from surprised to terrified.

"Are you a leaf?" He said again. She was a strange looking girl. Lavender eyes so bright they nearly seemed white contrasted against her deep blue hair. Despite her eyes seemingly lacking pupils, he could still see the fear in them, and on her face. He could hear it in the way she breathed and smell it on her like a sweet perfume. She was in such a state of terror that her mind numbing fear was actively assaulting all of his senses. He wouldn't have been surprised at all if he would be able to feel it if he were close enough to touch her.

"I'm not allowed to burn leaves. The Hokage made me promise. That's why I burn the trees that fall over. I like watching wood burn, but trees have too many leaves on them to burn. The fallen ones though, they don't have any leaves. They're just broken pieces of wood, waiting to burn." Naruto explained, turning away from the girl to look at the pile of ash that was slowly being blown away in the wind. It reminded him of the fake Iruka, and the ash that he became. He couldn't help but grin, realizing that all ash really did look the same.

The girl really didn't seem to like it when he grinned, if the crying was any indication.

Hinata had been completely unable to speak up to this point. As soon as he had turned around it was like a vice had closed in around her throat, refusing to let any sound out. She couldn't understand why he suddenly seemed so much more terrifying now, like he were something out of her worst nightmares. And that horrible pressure that he seemed to be giving off. It felt like he was crushing her, and all she could do was cry.

"So, are you a leaf?" Naruto asked yet again, turning towards the fallen girl and taking a few steps toward her, "Or are you just a fallen tree?"

"I'm a leaf! I'm a leaf!" She said quickly, fearfully, while simultaneously scurrying away from the boy and getting back to her feet.

"I thought so." Naruto said, turning away from the girl to head back towards the trees. "I think I found you once, while I was looking for me. That leaf was afraid too. It didn't want me to take it. It was afraid to leave the tree, afraid to fall. It liked being safe."

Naruto turned ever so slightly to look over his shoulder, staring into that girl's strangely empty eyes with his own fiercely blue ones.

"But leaves aren't really safe. Not even in a tree. If the wind doesn't knock it lose, something else will." Naruto's grin grew a bit before he turned and walked away. Judging from the smell, the girl had just pissed herself.

A little ways away, hidden within the shadow of a tree, a man in a ceramic wolf mask sat and watched events unfold. Uzumaki Naruto was walking away towards the forest, most likely going to collect more leaves, while Hyuuga Hinata remained in her spot, shaking uncontrollably and crying silently to herself. He had to admit, he hadn't been expecting things to escalate like that. Naruto was typically very docile around others. In fact, most of the other children who were in the academy with him barely acknowledged his existence.

For some reason, it was different this time. The amount of killing intent he had focused on Hinata throughout their little exchange would have made even a chuunin level ninja shake with fear. To direct such a thing on an eight year old girl? He was astounded she hadn't passed out. What had set him off, though? Admittedly, he had never seen anyone approach Naruto while he was using his fire before. Perhaps he had gotten angry about being interrupted?

"What happened? What's going on here?!" a woman in a dog mask demanded as she landed on the branch beside him. The man in the wolf mask was mildly surprised to see her, as he hadn't realized his shift was ending.

"Nothing to worry about. Naruto just scared her a bit, that's all." He said dismissively, standing up on the branch and turning towards his replacement. He was a bit confused when she didn't turn to him.

"Her eyes are bleeding!" She shouted, leaping from the tree to go to the girl.

"What?!" He said in surprise, following behind. Hyuuga Hinata sat in the fetal position, her hands in front of her eyes and her sobs easily audible. He didn't know how he had missed the blood that was dripping from between her fingers and staining the dirt beneath her.

--

"What...happened?" Sarutobi asked, looking at the two ANBU who stood before him with a ferocity few had seen him use. Kakashi slowly removed his wolf mask as a sign of respect before looking the Hokage in the eyes, ready to give his full report.

"Hyuuga Hinata had followed Uzumaki Naruto into the forest today, and watched him set fire to a tree. Afterwards, Naruto confronted her, said a few words, and left. Hinata appeared to be afraid of him and had started to cry. Their interaction seemed harmless."Kakashi stated, flinching slightly at the clear rage that flashed across the Hokage's face.

"Seemed harmless?! What part about 'crying blood' do you see as harmless? Hiashi is furious! He's demanding Naruto be punished for what happened to his daughter. How could you let this happen?" Sarutobi demanded, actively resisting the urge to assault the ninja for his incompetence.

"Hokage-sama, he never touched her. He didn't even get close to her. He also did nothing that would suggest any kind of foul play. He talked to her, and that's it. The worst thing he did was scare her." Kakashi insisted. Sarutobi merely shook his head and walked away from the man, towards his desk.

"Yuugao," The Hokage began, addressing the woman beside Kakashi, "What did you see?"

"Nothing, Hokage-sama. By the time I got there, Naruto was already gone and Hinata was already bleeding." She replied after removing her mask. For a few minutes, all was silent in the room as the Hokage looked at the two from across his desk. He focused his gaze on Kakashi, though, and on his left eye.

"Open your eye, Kakashi." Sarutobi said, causing Kakashi's only open eye to widen slightly.

"But, Hokage-sa-"

"Open it." Slowly, hesitantly, Kakashi opened his left eye, blanketing his vision in a strange field of color. The Sharingan eye, a gift from a fallen friend, was something Kakashi did not like to use very often. It's vision was wholly unlike that provided by a regular eye. It was an eye of details. Already, he was noticing things he otherwise would have overlooked, such as a small indent in the wood of the Hokage's desk a few centimeters from the edge, a clear sign that a shuriken had dug into its surface at some point in the past. It was somewhat disorienting, as he could actively feel his right eye lagging behind his left, as it simply couldn't keep up.

"That Sharingan eye of yours lets you see things no ordinary ninja can, even chakra, the very energy that makes up all of our Jutsu. If Naruto had used his chakra to assault Hinata, you would have seen it with that eye." Sarutobi stated. Kakashi could tell he didn't like where this was going.

"Did you have your left eye open while you were watching this encounter?" He asked. Sarutobi already knew the answer without Kakashi saying a thing. Kakashi's hesitation to answer was answer enough.

"No, Hokage-sama." He said, closing both eyes and lowering his head slightly in shame.

"Hatake Kakashi, you will be removed from surveillance duty on Uzumaki Naruto, effective immediately. I also highly suggest you take a leave of absence from active duty. You have some thinking to do." Sarutobi said in a manner that warranted no second guessing or response. It was simply the way it was going to be.

Kakashi bowed, turned, and left without saying anything further.

"Kakashi." Sarutobi said, causing the white haired ninja to stop and turn back around. Sarutobi briefly noted he had both eyes opened before he continued. "Your replacement is standing in the hall. Send him in on your way out."

"Yes, Hokage-sama." Kakashi said, turning once again and leaving the office. Immediately, he spotted the man he assumed would be replacing him, though 'man' was debatable. He couldn't have been older than 13.

"Sharingan? So you're Kakashi." The boy in ANBU armor said simply, rising to a standing position from where he was leaning against the wall. With a simple blink, his dark brown eyes became a startling red, with those familiar black tomoe circling each pupil.

"...You're an Uchiha." Kakashi stared into the eyes of the boy across from him with his own Sharingan eye, his three tomoe slowly circling.

"Is there something wrong, Kakashi-san?" He asked in a complete monotone, betraying almost no emotion on his face. Those stark red eyes of his seemed to be boring into Kakashi's mind. No matter how intently he looked at him, Kakashi couldn't seem to match the intensity of the boy's gaze.

"The Hokage wants to see you." Kakashi simply turned away and headed off, having no desire to stay there any longer.

"Take care of that Sharingan, Copy Ninja Kakashi." The Uchiha said to his back, causing Kakashi to pause briefly. "I'd hate to see you break it."

Kakashi continued on without a word, leaving him and the Hokage's office behind.

--

Kitsune

--

It had been a month since Uchiha Itachi had been assigned to Kakashi's former shift in the observation of Uzumaki Naruto, and in that time he felt he had come to know the boy and his habits very well. His behavior suggested that he didn't care about anyone but himself, and generally thought little of his fellow classmates. For the most part, he didn't acknowledge the other students existed, except during the occasional activity where he had to participate with the other members of the class.

Only during the tests did he pay any attention to anyone else, and at those times he gave the students a scrutiny beyond the teacher's. He sized them all up, seeing their skill, wanting to know how they compared to his own. He saw everyone else as nothing more than a challenge, a measuring stick by which he could compare himself.

There was some wisdom to be seen in that. It was something Itachi found himself doing very often. It came with the territory of the Sharingan, he figured. It was hard not to measure the strength of others, when you could memorize another's entire method of combat with a glance. It always made him wonder how he compared. Even now, as he watched the boy slowly walking home through the back streets from a nearby rooftop, Itachi was sizing him up. He was constantly examining the boy's potential, not only because it was his duty to observe him, but because it mystified him to no end.

At first glance, Naruto was nothing special. He was just a boy who showed minimal ability with barely above average talent and potential. When Itachi first began to observe the boy, he decided quickly that he was sub par, most likely never going to be able to rise beyond the rank of chuunin. Better than most, but by no means exceptional. But that opinion changed shortly thereafter, when the Hyuuga girl returned to class the day after Itachi had been assigned. She bumped into Naruto in the hall, shrieked, and fled.

In that instant, the boy had changed. No, that wasn't quite right. His _potential _changed. He looked no different from one second to the next, but every signal he gave off that the Sharingan was picking up on screamed of danger. Itachi had found himself unsheathing his sword and holding it defensively, ready for an attack, without even realizing it. But it only lasted a few moments. It was like a flash of power, a glimpse of something much greater hidden beneath the surface before it was covered up again.

In that single instant, Itachi was certain that the boy was beyond him. That realization had haunted him ever since. He had yet to catch another glimpse of that potential, that raw, uncontrolled power the boy seemed to be hiding, but he craved for it. He had to see it again, needed to see it. He needed to know how he compared, how close or far he and the Kyuubi child truly were. He felt an undeniable desire to test his own limits, to measure his own capacity. To him, there was no greater point of comparison.

"The northern wind seems to be coming in." A voice spoke from behind him, the voice of Uzuki Yuugao, the other ANBU who was assigned to the observation of the boy. They worked in twelve hour shifts, watching him day and night. Itachi felt somewhat foolish for failing to notice her arrival.

"Go away." He answered, ignoring the code word she presented. He had no intention of ending his shift. He still needed to watch the boy, gauge his power.

"What did you say?" Yuugao responded in a tone that suggested hostility. Itachi sighed slightly and turned to look at her, knowing it wouldn't be that simple. He rose to his feet and removed the ceramic mask that was covering his face before moving to wipe the nonexistent sweat from his brow.

"I'm sorry. The long shift must be getting to me." Itachi said simply, presenting a false smile. His smile became a little more genuine when Yuugao removed her mask as well, giving him a clear view of her eyes.

"I'll let it slide this time, but you can't forget protocol in the future. You do remember the proper response, don't you?" She asked, looking stern. She was addressing him as a mother would a son, though that was understandable considering their age difference.

"You don't look well. Are you sick?" Itachi asked, locking his eyes onto Yuugao's as the tomoe of his Sharingan began to circle his pupils.

"What? No...I'm..."

"You look woozy. You're about to faint." Her movements became groggy as she took a few steps back. She didn't even seem to realize he had used a genjutsu. Not that she could have done anything about it now. Itachi turned away from her as she collapsed, moving towards the edge of the roof and leaping down into the street below. It was time. He couldn't wait any longer.

Naruto stopped moving and turned, seeing the older boy in the strange armor standing in the road behind him. He wasn't moving, simply standing where he was and staring at Naruto's back. He didn't know what to make of it.

"Are you a leaf?" Naruto asked, looking at the boy with his head cocked slightly. He blinked as the boy started moving towards him slowly, his strange red eyes boring into Naruto's bright blue ones.

"Stop that." Naruto said with a frown, cocking his head the other way. The boy was starting to annoy him. He didn't like those eyes. They weren't right. They were all wrong, in fact. Why were they spinning? Eyes aren't supposed to spin.

"I don't like you looking at me." Naruto insisted. As the boy continued forward, Naruto took a few steps back. Who was this boy? What was he? Leaves weren't supposed to stand there staring at him. They were supposed to leave him alone. He found himself hating this boy, almost wanting him to burn. Maybe he wasn't a leaf? That'd mean he could burn. Burn those damn red eyes with their spinning.

"Iruka doesn't like you looking at me." Naruto added. The boy still wouldn't speak, only taking several more steps forward. His eyes were spinning faster now, almost blurring, but he never blinked. Was he a cat? People were supposed to blink. Only cats didn't blink. Naruto hated cats, Always staring. Never blinking. This boy was a cat, he decided. He hated cats.

"STOP LOOKING AT ME!!" Naruto screamed, clenching his eyes shut and taking a few more steps back. His fire burned just below the surface, wanting out, wanting to taste the flesh of this red eyed cat. Iruka wanted this boy to burn. Iruka didn't like those spinning eyes either.

"Show it to me." He spoke, blinking once. His eye started to change then, spinning in towards the center until the three outer dots connected with his pupil, forming a shape similar to a shuriken in the boy's red eyes. "Show me your real potential."

"Those eyes, I hate those eyes. I'll burn them; you and your eyes!" Naruto shouted, glaring intently at Itachi.

Itachi blinked as a wave of killing intent exploded out of the boy, the danger he seemed to pose skyrocketing. His Sharingan was picking up every facet of the boy's stance, every minute muscle twitch that might suggest a sudden motion. He was paying so much attention to his body that he almost missed the killing blow entirely.

Itachi's eyes crossed, seeing a wave of solid power approaching his face a matter of moments before it would have hit him. He had no time to dodge anymore, instead concentrating his chakra into his face in some hope of dampening the blow.

Itachi stumbled back as he was struck, but he didn't remain idle under the assault. His hands flew through several seals as he inhaled deeply, recovering his balance and exhaling towards the boy.

"Katon: Goukakyu no Jutsu!" A ball of fire erupted from Itachi's mouth like flames from the mouth of a dragon, quickly filling the street as they easily overtook Naruto's diminutive form. The flames continued to burn when Itachi stopped his assault and pulled back as he felt something wet and warm trickling down his face. Touching it slowly, he pulled his fingers away to see he was bleeding rather badly.

'What? He drew blood with his killing intent alone? I didn't know that was possible.' Itachi thought, blinking a few times to get the blood out of his vision and doing his best to wipe it away. It seemed his eyes themselves were bleeding, as well as a an open cut from his forehead to his nose. It had felt like someone had taken an axe to his face, and judging from the cut the result seemed to match the sensation.

An explosion seemed to erupt in the center of the bonfire Itachi had created, throwing shockwaves in every direction. The fire Itachi had made died only to reveal a greater fire underneath, a fire at the center of which stood an enraged boy, burning from its heat. The waves of killing intent were still coming off of him like ripples in a pond, and each time they passed over Itachi's body it felt like somebody was crushing his chakra and causing his blood to churn.

It wasn't overpowering, however. Knowing it was there meant he could defend against it, and a simple redirection of his chakra flow ended the building pain in his body. His eyes still stung a little, but that was tolerable.

"Even if you are a leaf, I'm gonna make you burn. I'm gonna make those damn eyes burn!" Naruto growled out, his fire intensifying as he rushed towards the red eyed bastard. His hands started to move far too fast for Naruto's eyes to follow, but he didn't care. He was upon him in an instant, smashing into his body like a flaming cannonball. However, his body simply crumbled away, seeming to come apart at the edges to reveal a murder of crows that promptly flew away.

"Eh!? What the..." Naruto muttered in confusion, just before he felt several odd impacts with his back. He stumbled forward from the blows, craning his neck to see at least half a dozen Kunai sticking out of his back.

'If fire doesn't work...' Itachi thought, his hands blurring through a series of hand seals. "Raiton!" he shouted, his hands having stopped in a dragon seal.

"Raikou no jutsu!" Naruto heard the shout from behind him just before his world became a blinding, deafening combination of light and sound. Naruto screamed and convulsed as the electricity flashed through his body. He fell to his knees but quickly rose and turned, just in time to narrowly avoid Itachi's sword. A second Itachi appeared a moment later, kicking him firmly in the chest and suddenly exploding upon contact with his aura of flames. Naruto was hurled by the two clones exploding in his face, hitting the ground some ways away and skidding to a halt.

"Is this the best you have?" Naruto heard him say as he slowly rose. His rage and frustration caused his flames to dance higher and burn brighter, but neither display seemed to cause the older boy to so much as flinch. He simply stood where he was and stared, unwavering.

"Your potential...and your strength...why is there such a gap between them?" He asked, pointing at Naruto as the boy glared.

"Why do my eyes tell me you're stronger than you are?" Naruto blinked, spinning around at the voice from behind but being unable to avoid the sword that now occupied the same space as his abdomen. He grunted from the blow, grabbing the blade with one hand while he reached towards his attacker with the other. He was too small, though, and the sword too long. No matter how brightly his fire burned, it just didn't seem able to close the gap.

"Damn you! I'll make you pay. Iruka will make you burn!" Naruto growled, holding out his hand and willing the Uchiha to burn. It didn't seem to be working, however. He wouldn't burn the way the trees did. If only he could touch him. If he could just touch him with his fire, he knew the boy would burn.

"You're nothing but a disappointment." Itachi muttered. His sword was starting to glow from the heat of the boy's body, and was probably already ruined beyond continued use. He could also feel the heat begin to build upon his skin, but he was stifling it with his chakra. It was time to end this for good.

"Tsukiyomi!"

Naruto lurched as the world seemed to invert itself. Before he could really understand what had happened, he found himself several feet off the ground, stuck to a wall by the same sword that was in his abdomen. Before him stood Itachi, his tormentor. Behind him, racks upon racks of bladed weapons extended out into infinity.

"This is the power of my Mangekyo Sharingan. This Tsukiyomi is my inner world. I control all things here. Space. Time. Matter. Even you. Everything is mine to command." Itachi said in his usual tone, turning around and grabbing a curved blade off of a table before turning and throwing it in the same motion. It sank into the stone wall Naruto was pinned to, barely grazing his right ear.

"Bastard. Iruka will make you burn." Naruto growled, willing his flames to reduce the sword keeping him to the wall to slag. However, they didn't comply. No matter how hard he tried, his flames just simply wouldn't burn.

"You don't listen, do you? I control everything here. You don't burn unless I want you to." Itachi explained, picking up a pike off a nearby rack.

"For the next 24 hours, you are mine." The pike sailed through the air and struck Naruto directly in the chest, piercing him straight through and not stopping until the blade fully sank into the wall behind him. Itachi slowly rose an eyebrow when he did not scream. He barely even flinched. He simply shook slightly with the impact, and continued to glare.

"...Your resistance to pain is impressive. But I wonder how long your mind will last." Several more Itachis suddenly appeared, each grabbing a weapon from one of the racks. Naruto's body shook with several more impacts as his blood poured from his open wounds, but he never once screamed, never once flinched. No matter how many weapons they threw, no matter how many hours passed, he just continued to glare, willing himself to burn.

"Why don't you scream?" Itachi found himself asking hours later. The boy started to grin in a manner that no sane man could as yet another weapon sunk into his body with minimal reaction.

"Iruka gives me strength. Iruka makes me burn. You can't stop me. Your illusions can't hurt me. I _will_ make you burn." Naruto growled, taking a shuriken to the face that he barely seemed to notice. Itachi stopped his assault as his clones and weapons faded away into the inverted world behind him. He was equally confused and intrigued by the lack of response he got from the boy. Despite having hundreds of weapons impaled in his body at that moment, he didn't even seem to be discomforted.

'Setting himself on fire must have given him inhuman tolerances to pain. I'll have to reconsider this.' Itachi thought to himself.

The world seemed to shift and Naruto was no longer on the wall, filled with weapons. Instead he found himself standing in a small depression in the ground, roughly as deep as he was tall. Itachi stood up above, looking down at him with those same damn eyes. Naruto immediately tried to jump at him, pounce him and claw those damn eyes out of his head, only to find himself unable to leave the ground. It only took a glance to realize his arms and legs were shackled to the floor.

"It seems I underestimated you, but this time you won't be so lucky." Itachi said, as an odd sound caused Naruto to glance down. The hole was filling with water.

"For the next 18 hours, you will remain in that hole." The water began to rise faster as Naruto pulled at the binds keeping him down with all his strength. The water was cold. Too cold. It was so cold that it had no business still being liquid as it slowly but surely began to fill up the hole. The cold was unbearable. It was a pain wholly unlike his fire and yet it still seemed to burn in the way freezing things did. As the water rose above his head, Naruto realized that the shackles would keep him just beneath the water's surface, close enough to leave the water but too far to take a breath. He thrashed, pulling against his restraints as his lungs cried out for oxygen but couldn't take any in.

'Iruka! I need strength! I need power!' Naruto thought desperately, feeling himself reaching the end of his rope. His lungs would be denied no longer, his mouth opening against his will and his body taking in a deep breath of freezing liquid. The agony was indescribable. He was drowning, desperately inhaling but getting nothing but water, and yet he would not die. Itachi wouldn't let him die. He would just keep drowning forever.

'**You want strength?**' He could hear the voice of the fox at the edge of his mind, asking questions it knew the answer to in a tone of voice between a chuckle and a whisper. He seemed to be taking pleasure in Naruto's pain, tantalizing him with the offer of power but doing nothing to end his torment.

'**You know what you have to do.**' The voice said, before fading away into the darkness of his mind. An idea came to him of what to do, an idea he knew was not his own but knew would work regardless. Naruto grimaced in determination, stilling his struggles long enough to form a seal with his hands and speak the words the best he could with lungs filled with liquid.

'Something isn't right.' Itachi thought, feeling an odd pulse from the boy before the world seemed to explode in his face. He was carried down the street a ways by a wave of water before stopping as his body hit a building. As he returned to his feet, he noticed he was once again standing in the back streets of Konoha. Somehow, his Tsukiyomi had failed. That wasn't supposed to happen.

He didn't have time to think about it, though. Naruto was hunched over, vomiting liquid in the middle of the road while breathing in deep, labored gasps. His body was completely bathed in flames and was now sporting a long, menacing tail of fire that was currently whipping around in the air as if searching for a target.

Itachi decided then that it would be best to retreat.

Naruto rose from his position and let out the most powerful roar he could manage in some attempt to vent his rage and frustration. He glanced around at his surroundings, desperately trying to find that bastard and burn him once and for all. He was already gone.

"Where are you?! You can't run, we're not done with you yet!" Letting out another roar, Naruto bounded off in a random direction, his fire dying out in favor of increasing his speed as he searched for his prey.

--

His eyes faded back into a deep brown as he slumped against the wall, suddenly feeling an unexpected fatigue hit his body. He didn't even really feel like standing anymore as he continued to slide until he came to a sitting position with his forehead resting on his knees. Was the Tsukiyomi really this taxing? Or perhaps this was a side effect of being caught in the Kyuubi's killing intent?

He noted that both his eyes and forehead were still bleeding and did his best to wipe away the blood on his pants before standing back up. It was dark, far too dark. The overcast sky prevented any illumination from the moon or stars, but he felt he should have been able to see better than this. It was like he had been staring directly into the sun before being shoved into a pitch black room. He couldn't see a thing, and his eyes were taking much too long to adjust to the darkness.

'What is the meaning of this? When did it get this dark?' Itachi thought as he tried to catch his breath. He squinted, starting to barely make out the vague shape of his surroundings. He needed to keep running, but he had no idea where he was or where anything else was, for that matter. His failure to subdue Naruto with Tsukiyomi was going to cost him; their battle had been far too noisy for his liking and had likely already gained the attention of Konoha's ninja population.

"Itachi? There you are!" A voice from behind interrupted his thoughts, causing Itachi to turn.

"Father?" He muttered, his eyes finally adjusting to the darkness enough to make out his father's form in the night.

"We haven't seen you all day. You were supposed to come to the clan meeting an hour ago. " Itachi's father explained. Damn it, he really didn't have time for this. Naruto, Yuugao, even ANBU hunter nins were liable to show up at any moment. His days in Konohagakure were numbered, and he really didn't have the time to worry about his worthless clan.

"You've been acting strangely lately, Itachi. You've become obsessed with that boy you were assigned to, you rarely return home and when you do you speak to no one. Shisui said he was going to try and talk some sense into you today. Oddly enough, I hadn't seen him or you since." Itachi could hear the suspicion and all but accusation in his father's voice, but made no sign to show it.

"Shisui didn't show up to the meeting either? That's unusual for him. He seemed fine when I saw him earlier today." Itachi feigned ignorance, knowing full well why his good friend Shisui was missing. He had been an important stepping stone in Itachi's quest to test his full potential. And it was entirely thanks to Shisui's death that Itachi was able to awaken his Eye.

"I agree, it is very unusual. But, we have no time to discuss it. Hurry up." His father turned and began to lead the way back towards the Uchiha compound while Itachi silently followed. This was definitely not good. The Uchiha made up the vast majority of the Konohagakure Military Police, and every single one of them would be present during a clan meeting. Plus, with the Sharingan bloodline that all Uchiha could potentially awaken, and most having succeeded, they presented an obvious threat.

Itachi was not in a good position. Murder, Insubordination and Attempted Murder all added up to Treason in the eyes of the Hokage, and the punishment for that was death. He couldn't risk having ANBU show up to apprehend him in the middle of a clan meeting. No, the Uchiha were definitely a liability, one he would need to eliminate. He just had to do it on his own terms. Killing all the Uchiha was one thing, killing them with ANBU backing them up was something else entirely.

"Itachi? What happened? Your face is bleeding!" Itachi heard his father exclaim as he finally noted Itachi's obvious injury.

"Is it?" Itachi muttered, reaching up to his face with his left hand while pulling a kunai from his back pouch with his right. In a flash, that kunai was buried in the abdomen of his father, who had been too busy looking at his son's face to notice what his hands were doing.

"Hm, So it seems." Itachi twisted the kunai while drawing a second one to his father's throat. He never even had the chance to scream.

--

Not here. Not here. Not here either. He was no where. Where was he? A crack of thunder seemed to emphasize his impact as Naruto dropped from a nearby roof, completely ignoring the rapidly worsening weather in favor of searching for the damned red eyed bastard. He could smell him. He could almost taste him, but he still couldn't find him. He had been here, not too long ago. But now, he was nowhere to be found.

"Where is he? How did he get away?!" Naruto smashed his fist into the ground, punctuating the blow with a quick burst of flames that left the stone pathway steaming in the light rain that had begun to fall.

A flash of movement out of the corner of his eye incited him to turn. Blue and red met as Naruto gazed into the spinning eyes of his tormentor, causing him to stumble back. What was that?! Naruto rubbed his eyes, feeling as if they had somehow been tainted.

"You're going the wrong way." Itachi stated in an emotionless monotone, pointing to the north. Naruto roared, his new found tail burning into life before he thrust his hands in an uppercut towards the elder boy. The resulting pillar of flame caused the clone to explode in a puff of smoke while simultaneously melting a shallow hole in the pathway.

Naruto barely hesitated as he turned to the north, letting his flames burst into life just as he took his journey to the rooftops. He could smell it again, he could smell his prey. There was no way he'd lose him now.

-

Itachi stumbled back slightly after deflecting the blow with a Kunai. Already he was surrounded by the bodies of the fallen, but they were the trash. Those that remained stared at him with their Sharingan eyes, not moving an inch as they sized him up.

"What is the meaning of this, Itachi?! How can you betray your clan?" One of the Uchiha shouted out, holding his sword at the ready but making no move to attack.

"I care not for this worthless clan. You are simply a hindrance, dead weight that needs to be cast off before I can continue to rise. And now, you're nothing more than a liability." Itachi never took his eyes off the several clan members before him, despite being able to see several edging their ways towards his back. A pair of Kunai in either direction failed to connect, but it gave them pause.

"Do you really think you can kill all of us yourself?" Another one asked, this one nursing a wound in his side. Itachi smirked slightly at the question, dropping his arms in the process.

"I could, but I don't have the time. That's what backup plans are for." Itachi turned away from them then, looking over the wall of the Uchiha compound as a human bonfire landed on it with enough of an impact to crush several tiles.

Naruto glared down into compound, seeing the bodies of numerous dead surrounded by even more people. No, not people. Cats. Every last one of them was a red eyed cat.

"Clones. More clones?" Naruto growled, his eyes jumping from one Itachi to another. They all looked the same, which one was real?

It didn't matter. He'd just burn them all. He'd burn down the entire district if he had to.

--

It didn't take long for news to spread. The very first Katon jutsu Itachi had used had garnered attention, but both he and Naruto had broken off before anyone could arrive. Now, with most of the Uchiha District in flame, it wasn't hard at all for the ninja population of Konoha to locate the disturbance and rush to the scene. It was this scene that two young boys were trying to get a better view of from a rooftop a few blocks away from the Uchiha complex.

"We aren't supposed to be out here, ya know." Shikamaru complained as he sluggishly collapsed against the small fence that surrounded he roof, sticking his hands in his pockets as he did so.

"Come on, Shikamaru, don't tell me you aren't curious!" Chouji said as he gazed out over the roof tops towards the flames. From this distance, he could just barely make out the ninja that were trying to control the blaze. Huh, that was odd. Some of the fire looked black.

"Not really. Fires happen. Further we are from them when they do, the happier I'd be." Shikamaru muttered lazily, turning his eyes skyward to watch the clouds. They completely covered the sky, unfortunately, resulting in an almost featureless blanket of gray.

An explosion suddenly erupted from the direction of the fire, briefly drawing Shikamaru's attention as Chouji exclaimed at the show. It was Shikamaru who noticed the figure dashing away from the site of the explosion, straight towards them.

"Someone's coming this way, Chouji!" Shikamaru hissed, knowing full well they'd both be in huge trouble if they were found by one of the ninja. Sometimes, his friend was just so troublesome.

The figure arrived far too quickly for them to run, landing with enough of an impact to put a depression in the roof tiles. It didn't take them more than a second to realize it wasn't one of the ninja.

"Hey, aren't you from our class? What were you doing over there?" Chouji asked. Naruto twisted his head towards the annoying voice, his eyes squinting at the figure. It was...the red eyed cat? No. too short, too fat. But it was the cat, his mind was telling him so. The disagreement between his eyes and mind was beginning to upset him as a small, guttural growl began to rise in his throat. Naruto rose from his spot and charged at Chouji, fully intent on tearing the source of his annoyance apart.

Chouji screamed and fell back as Naruto approached, clenching his eyes shut in preparation for a blow that never came. Curiously, he opened his eyes, seeing Naruto frozen in position a few inches from his face.

"Run Chouji!" Shikamaru shouted, rising from he kneeling position with Naruto following him in unison. Naruto struggled, trying to move any part of his body but completely failing from the neck down. He noticed his head was still under his own control and turned a glare on the other cat present.

"Can't move. Why can't I move? Did you do this?" Naruto growled, still glaring. Shikamaru simply waved his arms around for a few moments, showing that Naruto's body was completely under his control.

"My jutsu controls anyone I attach my shadow to." He explained, causing Naruto to look down. He noticed that their shadows were, in fact, attached. "Why did you attack Chouji?"

"Red eyed cats everywhere. I hate them, have to kill them. Their eyes don't stop spinning unless I kill them." Naruto rambled. Shikamaru was honestly rendered speechless by the response.

"You control me with shadows? Can you control this?" Naruto suddenly burst into flame and Shikamaru's shadow immediately followed as if it were coated in gasoline. Before he was even aware of what happened, Shikamaru was on his back, screaming in pain as his legs caught fire.

"Nope!" Naruto answered his own question with a laugh, admiring the way Shikamaru's legs burned.

"Stop it!" Chouji shouted, pulling off his jacket and trying to smother the flames on Shikamaru's legs with it. It just wouldn't work though, and soon his Jacket also caught fire. "Stop it, damn you!" His shouting did nothing to stop the fire, but only served to draw Naruto's eyes towards the fat boy.

"You want to burn too?" Naruto asked with a grin, raising his other hand towards Chouji.

"..." Naruto's eyes rolled up into the back of his head as he collapsed forward, his fire dying out abruptly at the sound of a loud 'thump' echoed across the rooftop. As Naruto hit the ground, a kunai clattered to the roof behind him, having just bounced off the back of his head. Chouji could only watch in surprise as an ANBU appeared suddenly behind Naruto, leaning down to pick up the kunai he had thrown.

Kakashi examined the kunai in surprise, seeing that the tip was still glowing slightly and was visibly deformed. To think that Naruto's flames were hot enough to kill the edge in flight was a scary thought, one he knew would have to be taken into consideration in the future. In a way, it was a happy accident, as it had dulled his killing blow into an incapacitating one.

"Are you okay?" Kakashi asked, turning towards the downed Shikamaru. His legs were not a pretty sight. He'd be surprised if the boy would be able to walk again anytime soon. Shikamaru made no comprehensible response, instead continuing to cry out in pain.

"Is he going to be okay?" Chouji asked, watching the ANBU form a few hand seals before another one of him appeared. The original picked up the blonde from their class while the second scooped Shikamaru up before turning to the boy.

"I don't know, kid. Go home." With that, both ANBU bounded away, carrying the two boys off into the night.

--

"How am I supposed to keep him from endangering himself and others if I cannot even trust the people who are supposed to watch him?" The Hokage muttered with a sigh as he watched the young blonde boy climb around in a random tree. Said tree was surrounded by roughly 20 armed ninja, each watching the boy like a hawk, should he attempt anything.

"Nobody could have predicted what Itachi did, Hokage-sama. It was unavoidable." Kakashi replied, he too watching Naruto intensely with both eyes wide open.

"No, it wasn't." The Hokage said curtly. "Report."

"As far as we can gather, Itachi's motive was the destruction of the Uchiha clan. We believe he intentionally antagonized Naruto into a homicidal rage, then placed a genjutsu on him that would make anyone Naruto came across appear to be Itachi in his eyes. He then led the boy to the Uchiha district." Kakashi explained. It was as much as they had been able to discern from the circumstances as well as the testimony of Naruto himself and a few offhand comments Itachi had made during his attempted apprehension.

"And how was Itachi able to do this uninterrupted?" Sandaime responded, turning towards the ANBU on his other side.

"I'm deeply sorry, Hokage-sama, he waited until his shift had ended and incapacitated me so that I would not interfere. All that has happened is my fault." Yuugao bowed deeply as she spoke, deeply ashamed of how easily she had been taken out by the teenaged boy. Sandaime made no response to her apology, making her feel even more foolish for her ineptness.

"What of Itachi?" This question was directed to a tall Jounin with a bowl cut to Kakashi's right.

"He escaped, Hokage-sama! It is unfortunate, but I was unable to apprehend him despite my great power! If you would like, I shall run five hundred, no, one thousand laps around Konoha to repent for my failure!" The man shouted out, tears dripping down his face.

"Do what you want." Sandaime turned to Kakashi for explanation as Gai ran off at top speed.

"Our forces were too busy trying to control the spread of the fire to amount a sufficient assault in stopping Itachi. Gai was the only one that was able to keep up with him, and he alone wasn't able to prevent Itachi from escaping the village." Sandaime nodded in understanding, feeling strangely powerless in the matter. It wasn't a feeling he was fond of.

'It seems like he thought of everything. Using Naruto to kill his clan, knowing the boy would set so many fires in the process that he could make a clean get away. We underestimated you, Itachi.' He thought to himself before turning back towards Kakashi.

"Were there any survivors?" He also dreaded the answer.

"The Uchiha district was burned to the ground, sir. If that were not bad enough, both Itachi and Naruto were in there slaughtering anyone they found. Only one survived, and he's suffered so many burns that they had to put him into a coma while he heals." Kakashi said.

"Who was it?" The Hokage asked.

"Uchiha Sasuke; he's Itachi's little brother," came the reply. The Hokage briefly wondered if that was intentional before turning his attention to the last matter at hand.

"And what of that boy Naruto attacked before you incapacitated him?" The Hokage asked, turning away from the tree Naruto was in locking his gaze with Kakashi's.

"The Nara boy will live. He'll even walk again. He should be going home today." Kakashi answered the question, glad to see the Hokage smile for the first time that day. It was a shame he had bad news.

"But," Kakashi began, watching the smile fall, "His chakra coils were damaged beyond repair. He'll never be able to channel chakra through his legs or feet again."

The Hokage simply shook his head and began to move away from the area, feeling so much older than he had before he had received word of this disaster. He just wanted to return home and lay down for awhile. He felt like he would collapse if he didn't.

"Old Man Hokage!" Naruto's voice echoed across the court yard, causing all the assembled ninja to tense in preparation for whatever was to come. Sarutobi simply turned slowly, looking up at Naruto as he hung from a branch of the tree, holding out a leaf triumphantly.

"I found me!" He exclaimed.

--

He concentrated, forming the seal and pushing his chakra down towards his shadow. It stopped at his knees, like it had every time he had tried thus far, but still he pushed on it, willed it to continue to his feet, trying to force it even a fraction of an inch farther. It refused to comply.

"Kage Mane no Jutsu!" He cried out pointlessly, almost hoping his shadow would react despite knowing it wouldn't. He stopped then and fell backwards into a sitting position, looking at the heavy bandages that were still wrapped around his burns. He knew they were there, despite having yet to see them. He could feel them, the way they still hurt even after a full day of recovery. He could only hope the pain would go away once he was completely healed.

"Shikamaru." The boy turned as he heard his name called, seeing his father standing in the doorway with an odd look on his face.

"What is it?" He asked, getting to his feet and slowly walking towards his father.

Shikaku sighed, looking away from his son for a moment. He kept finding his eyes being drawn to the boy's disfigured legs, knowing what that signified. It was for that reason that he was here now.

"I think it would be best if you dropped out of the academy." He said. The words hit Shikamaru like a blow to the head. He even stumbled back slightly after hearing it.

"W...what?! Why?!" He demanded. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. His father had always pushed him to become a ninja, to do his best and excel. Shikamaru had been perfectly content skirting by with the bare minimum of effort, figuring he'd be fine as an average ninja, earning an average wage and living an average life. But to drop out completely? Give up entirely?

"Shikamaru, you have to face the facts. You've been seriously injured. You'll be disabled for life. There are numerous ninja skills that you simply cannot do without the ability to channel chakra into your feet. Our entire family style depends on that ability. How do you expect to continue as a ninja without your Hijutsu?" Shikaku explained as calmly as he could. He was surprised his son was bothering to argue the matter. He had half expected him to shrug the suggestion off and go stare at the sky for a few hours.

"I still have my jutsu, dad. This is only a handicap if I let it be one." Shikamaru replied, only to see his father scoff.

"People with handicaps do not overcome them easily, Shikamaru. It takes hard work and dedication. You would have to put forth twice the effort to achieve half the results. Just quit, Shikamaru. Find a job as a civilian. You don't have the drive to become a ninja." Shikaku shook his head as he finished, turning away from his son to move back towards their home.

"...Take that back..." It had been barely a whisper, but the words gave Shikaku pause. He didn't turn around, however.

"Take what back? The truth?" He asked, loud enough for Shikamaru to hear him without having to turn to face him.

"You don't think I have what it takes to be a ninja? You don't think I can overcome this?" His son asked, his voice sounding more determined than Shikaku had ever heard him. In that moment, he knew that he had pushed his son to a crossroad. Depending on how he chose his next words, everything would change.

"I don't think you can't succeed, Shikamaru," Shikaku said, turning slightly to look at his son over his shoulder. "I know you can't."

As he walked away, Shikaku lowered his head. He could only hope that one day his son would forgive him. Shikamaru fell to his knees, his hands supporting him as his body shivered with barely contained tears.

His father...his father really thought so little of him? Did he really come off as so pathetic? All his talk of being content with being average, is this what it meant? Was he really so worthless?

'No!' His fingers dug into the dirt, giving him handfuls of soil that he was doing his best to crush. He was not worthless! So what if he was handicapped? What what if he was burned? He couldn't let that stop him. He refused to let that stop him!

"You're wrong, dad. I'll prove you wrong. I don't care how hard it is. I won't let this injury slow me down." Shikamaru sat up at that, forming his hand into a familiar seal as he remained on his knees.

"Kage Mane no Jutsu." He watched with a smirk as his shadow shook and rippled. That was it. He may not have been able to channel his chakra through his feet, but there was more than one way to reach his shadow. He still had his Hijutsu, he just needed to come with new ways of applying it.

'I need to find Chouji.' Shikamaru thought as he got back to his feet. 'I need to start training.'

--

Fire. Everywhere he looked was flames. The walls, the floors, the ceiling, everything burned with equal ease as he pushed and clawed and fought desperately to free himself from the fallen beam. He could feel the fire licking at his body, he could feel his skin searing and melting away under the intense heat, the wooden beam like a red hot iron being pressed into his flesh. The only way the burning would stop would be if he freed himself. As long as he remained there, it would only get worse. Thus his struggles grew stronger even as the fire scarred him further. Finally, something gave. The very flame that was eating away at his flesh was eating away at his prison. The beam fell away and he was free, quickly getting to his feet and limping towards the exit as fast as his injuries allowed.

The fresh air hit him equally as a welcome change and a hated irritant, the chill of the wind both cooling him off while making his burns only seem to hurt more. As he stumbled outside, he turned back towards his home, marveling in horror at the black and red flames that were slowly consuming it. He wanted to look away, but couldn't.

Something smashed into his back and forced him to the ground roughly, and only moment later did he realize it was on fire. He looked up at his attacker, seeing a young boy no older than he perched on his back. His eyes held a promise of pain while his grin suggested he would enjoy it immensely. What made it all the worse was the fact the boy was completely engulfed in crimson flames, and that his feet felt like they were burning holes into his back.

Ever so slowly, the boy leaned forward, until his mouth was only inches from his own ear. He could feel his hair start to singe as the skin on his cheek began to crack and burn from the proximity of the human bonfire that was perched on him. He could _hear_ the other boy's skin burning, could feel his breath on the back of his neck. A chuckle built up in the boy's throat, so quiet he wouldn't have heard it had he not been so close. And then, he spoke.

"Don't scream."

--

"GAAAAAAH!!" Sasuke shot up to a sitting position and immediately regretted doing so once the pain registered. He quickly fell back into his bed, wondering what had caused him such a scare as the nightmare already began to fade from memory.

It was only then that he realized something wasn't right. His body was covered in bandages and he could feel a dull throb of pain all over. It was almost hard to tell what parts of him _didn't _hurt. What was worse was that this wasn't his room. It looked like a hospital.

"Oh, you're awake! How are you feeling?" His suspicion was confirmed when a young nurse came into the room and began to fuss over him. What had happened? Why was he so hurt? He couldn't...he couldn't remember what happened at all.

"Where am I? What happened to me?" Sasuke asked, knowing he wouldn't like the answer when he saw the nurse become fidgety and nervous.

"You...you've been in a drug induced coma for the past week. The Uchiha district burned to the ground. The doctor says you have burns covering about 40 of your body." The nurse explained slowly, watching Sasuke's face fall as she did so.

"Don't worry though! The damage wasn't too serious. Though you'll have a lot of scarring, you'll be able to go back to the academy without any trouble." The Nurse added quickly.

"What about my parents?" Sasuke asked. He turned away when the nurse's face fell, knowing the answer before she even said anything.

"I'm sorry, you were the only survivor." The nurse slowly rose and left the room, the sobs of an 8 year old boy escaping from him a few moments later.

--

To be Continued

Ryo-Wolf


	4. Tanuki

Disclaimer: Naruto is the property of whoever it was that made it.

--

The unforgiving desert sun beat down on the sands below with a fierce intensity, rapidly baking the ground that had just so recently been painfully cold in the darkness of the night. That was the norm here; a place of perpetual extremes. Nothing happened gradually. There was no subtleness to the world that greeted the inhabitance of Sunagakure. One moment, all was well. The next, everything had turned upside-down. That was simply the way it was. Thus, it should come as no surprise that the people of this hidden desert village had come to act in a similar way. As the world around them treated them to constant extremes, they in turn would treat each other with a similar lack of subtlety.

It was no wonder the assassins her father constantly sent were so terrible at stealth.

'This one seems stupider than the last.' Gaara thought to herself, walking through the village streets in the direction of a more empty area of town. As she turned down another alley way, she sensed her pursuer follow shortly thereafter. It was almost as if he didn't realize she was leading him into a trap.

As she walked, she listened to the sand all around her. It spoke to her, in its own way, telling her all. In a desert, there was little the sands didn't know. She could hear the man behind her take another step, his foot sinking into the sand a good bit before he lifted his other leg for another step. He was at least 167 centimeters tall, judging from the length of his stride, and a good 90 kilograms. That was unusual. She could only assume he was wearing some kind of armor. At least he was smart enough to do that.

In an instant, he moved, one moment walking down the alley peacefully, the next tearing open his cloak and unleashing a barrage of shuriken that numbered in the hundreds. Much like the desert itself, he moved from one extreme to the next with little warning at all.

Gaara stopped walking, the earthen cloak wrapped around her body unfurling in an instant into a cloud of sand. It moved with a swiftness that was almost beyond comprehension, forming a barrier between her and her attacker that quickly claimed all of his weapons. She spun around then, throwing her arm out towards the foolish assassin who was in the midst of a few hand seals.

"Too slow." The walls on either side of the assassin fluidized in a fraction of a second, collapsing inward before squeezing down upon him like a vice. She could hear his body pop like a pimple under the pressure of her assault, but the sand quickly told her something was not right. His body had no blood.

'Clone.' Gaara realized, turning just as her shield of sand flew around to get between her and the incoming blade of wind. The sand shook with the impact but otherwise held strong, parting to reveal the assassin standing atop the building above her.

With little more than a glance, Gaara's sand exploded towards the idiot while Gaara herself rode up the wall beside her, the wall collapsing into sand as she went and carrying her up. The assassin leapt as Gaara's sand struck, unleashing another wind Jutsu towards her that she manually blocked with the sand from the wall. The assassin landed on an overhang, however it immediately collapsed into sand the moment his feet touched it.

"Shit!" He cursed, tumbling towards the ground while frantically making more hand seals. "Reppushou!"

The assassin thrust his palm down, scattering the sands away from him with an intense gust of wind as he landed. Before he could steady himself, however, he was blindsided by Gaara's sand, which quickly dragged him into the air while enveloping him entirely, save his head.

"Everything in this village is constructed from the materials of the desert. There is nowhere you can go where you're safe from my sand." Gaara said simply, holding her arm up towards him with her hand in a loose fist. All it would take is a squeeze, a clenching of her hand, and the man would be dead. This was a moment she liked to savor.

Something blurred out from the man's mouth, barely registering to her eyes. She moved her head to the side purely on reflex, but whatever it was grazed her cheek regardless.

"What-" Gaara muttered in surprise, just as the assassin began to laugh wildly.

"Ha ha! Yes! I've done it, I've fucking won! Take that you little monster! I knew you'd try to crush me. Your shield of sand can't protect you while you're using it as a weapon! That needle was laced with the most powerful poison known to the Hidden Sand. You're as good as dead!" The assassin continued to laugh at his perceived victory while Gaara simply stood there, staring up at him calmly. Then, ever so slowly, a smirk found its way to her face.

A crack spread across her cheek, stemming from the scratch and reaching up to the corner of her eye. Then another one appeared going down towards her jaw. Several more followed, before her face began to resemble broken glass. Then, the cut just crumbled away, revealing unmarred flesh beneath it.

"Thanks," Gaara said, laughing even as the armor of sand reformed, "you've proven it useful."

She clenched her fist, compressing the idiot assassin's body down to the width of a human hair with the suddenness of an implosion. The crack of his bones shattering was almost drowned out by the squishing of his innards being reduced to a fine paste. Surprisingly, he managed to scream before the life was literally squeezed out of him. Of course, that was silenced abruptly when his head exploded like an overripe melon as his innards looked for someplace to go.

She made a mental note to cover the head of the next one. That had been rather messy.

Gaara turned away from the rain of gore behind her and instead turned her attention to the needle that was embedded in the roof at her feet. Hmm, that was odd. It seemed as if a length of paper was wrapped around it.

"A note?" Gaara muttered in confusion, pulling the length of paper off and examining it. She was expecting it to be an explosive note, but instead she recognized the flowing handwriting of her father.

'Report to mission center for briefing. -Yondaime Kazekage.' It read. It seemed her father was using assassins as messengers now. How quaint. As she walked away, her shield of sand flowed after her, collecting and condensing itself around her body until it was once again in the appearance of an earthen cloak. Without missing a step, Gaara pulled the hood up over her head and leapt down from the roof, heading in the direction of her small residence. She could report to the mission center later. Right now, she had more important business to attend to.

She had sworn to herself six years ago that she would wear the armor of sand without pause until she could prove it had a use. She had finally accomplished that goal. It was time to shed the armor, something she had been looking forward to for as long as she could remember. Her head had been itching for the past several years, and her chest had started to bother her in the past few months as well.

As she arrived home, Gaara let her sand cloak collapse to the floor, her sash and shirt following shortly thereafter. A loosening of her belt allowed her pants to fall to the ground, which she simply stepped out of afterwards. Gaara stood in her own living room, practically nude, save for one last thing.

The armor of sand, which had cradled her and held to her body tightly for the past six years, began to crack before it simply crumbled away.

The first thing she noticed was an amazing sense of lightness. She never realized just how heavy the armor was until that moment. She almost felt too light, like a single step would launch her into the ceiling. After that came a chill that crawled across her flesh as the wind caressed it for the first time in half a decade and a curtain of red that fell in front of her eyes. Had her hair been growing under the sand the whole time? It reached nearly to her breasts now. She had breasts now?

With carefully placed steps, Gaara crossed her home towards the bathroom, where a full length mirror laid in wait. As she entered, her eyes caught her reflection and her breath almost caught in her throat. Was that really her? Gaara reached up and pushed her long bangs behind her ears, noticing with some degree of dissatisfaction how sweaty and grimy it felt. Her face had definitely changed. For the past six years, she had been wearing the face of a young boy through the armor of sand, and now looking back at her was the face of a 12 year old girl.

She moved her head subtly, looking at her own face from as many different angles as she could. She had the briefest urge to try out different expressions just to see what they looked like, but couldn't work up the desire to form more than a frown. She could see a resemblance to her elder sister in the shape of her face, a thought that brought her gaze lower.

Her nipples were larger than she remembered, and her chest was beginning to bulge with the presence of breasts. They were swollen and tender, though, from her unknowingly crushing them under her armor for who knew how long, giving her a much larger appearance than they should look. Her eyes fell further, seeing the way her body narrowed at the waist before widening again at her hips. She twisted slightly at the waist to get a look at her butt, noticing that it was filling out as well.

Her figure was undeniably feminine, a thought that made her simultaneously happy and depressed. She was glad to see that she was not lagging behind her elder sister as much as she had thought, but knew her father would disapprove of the change. There was no way she could hide this under her armor, though. She didn't want to. She felt good about her decision to conceal her shield of sand as a cloak, now. At least that would make her gender a little less obvious to observers.

Gaara moved away from the mirror and into the shower stall, feeling the way her hair clung to her and decided washing it was in order. She gasped as the water hit her bare skin, once again realizing just how sensitive she was after cutting herself off from the outside world for so long. She quickly rinsed herself off before turning to concentrate on her hair, letting the water soak into it before running her hands through the mess of crimson to clear it of any tangles.

The water progressively got warmer as Gaara turned her gaze to the corners of the shower stall, her eyes falling on a small bottle which she promptly grabbed. It had been Yashamaru's, she imagined, and had been sitting there for longer than Gaara cared to think about. The shampoo certainly made things easier. After a few minutes, Gaara was satisfied with her hair and turned her attention to the rest of her, running her hands slowly down her body as she looked around for some kind of soap. Finding none, she turned to the shampoo, again deciding it was better than nothing.

As she washed, she slowly closed her eyes, letting her hands roam over her body while she listened to the sound of the water hitting the floor of the stall. She was feeling warmer now as the steam began to build up in the small bathroom from the heat of the water. Her skin still tingled pleasantly, but the sensation was starting to dull as time passed, much to her relief. Her fingers traced around her areolas slightly as she washed her breasts, causing her to notice a wholly different tingling sensation.

Gaara's eyes snapped open towards the closed bathroom door as she froze in position. She tensed her body, briefly wondering how well she'd be able to move without the armor when the wall exploded inward in a shower of dust and splinters. Gaara was off like a shot at the very same instant, the shower behind her peppered with shuriken a fraction of a second after she vanished.

She almost ran headlong into a wall without even realizing it, but with a simple pulse of chakra it collapsed into sand around her. She landed in the next room, pulling the sand along with her and willing it to flow up her body. Her eyes locked with those of her attacker as the familiar smooth caress of the armor of sand settled around her body. He was visibly shocked, clearly not having expected to see what he had. That split second of hesitation was all she needed.

The shield of sand struck the man from behind like a pouncing cat, throwing him across the room and coiling around his body until he was nothing more than a lump of sand pressed against the wall. After a few moments, Gaara let the sand fall away from his face, allowing the assassin to pull in a much needed breath of air.

"You're a...a girl?" He muttered stupidly, still starring at Gaara's body incredulously. Despite the armor, she still appeared quite nude. With a glare, Gaara shifted the sand again, covering the man's entire face with the exception of his mouth.

"Do you have a message for me, too?" Gaara asked, the annoyance clear in her voice as she held her hand in a ready position to finish him off. To think her father would send two assassins in one day. He was getting impatient in his old age.

"Yondaime-sama wants you to report to the mission center immediately." Very impatient, Gaara decided.

"You saw something you weren't supposed to. I think I'll kill you slowly for that, starting with your eyes." Gaara said, changing her hand position as she willed the sand into motion. She could feel them pressing inward. Scraping. Eroding. The assassin screamed as she let her sand eat away at his eyes, making sure to wipe the sockets clean as she did so. It was only then that she turned to the rest of him, starting first with his extremities, the sand containing him rotating and twisting about the man with ever increasing speed, flaying his flesh with painful ease.

Throughout her torment of him, she never bothered to cover his mouth. She wanted him to scream. She wanted to listen to his screams.

--

The mood in the room was tense as they waited for the final face to show itself. This time of waiting was always the worst, not knowing when or if Gaara would show himself. They all pretended not to know about the assassins, turning away and acting like they didn't see the way their father tried again and again to kill his youngest child. It was just one more thing to add to the ever growing pile of reasons to hate the man. Sometimes, Temari found herself hoping someone would assassinate _him_ already, and save the rest of them the worry.

The sound of the door opening drew the attention of all three currently gathered, seeing the familiar cloaked figure walk in the room as a clear sign that the boy had once again survived the attack. He looked different, though. Despite having seen him last no less than a month ago, his hair seemed to have grown dramatically.

"You're late." Baki said simply, glaring at the boy as he came in and leaned against a support beam.

"I had some pests to kill." Gaara replied before changing the subject, "What's the mission?"

Baki stood up from the small desk he sat behind and looked across the room at the three genin before him. Temari, Kankuro and Gaara, the three children of Yondaime Kazekage, and the only team they could trust with the situation that was currently facing them.

"Recently, the Wind Daimyo's second eldest son has been sent towards the border to negotiate trade routes with our neighbors to the north. Under normal circumstances, a small team of Shinobi from Sunagakure would accompany a member of the Daimyo's family on such a trip, and we offered our services as such." Baki began to go over the mission parameters, handing a file to Temari, who was the closest one to him.

"However, the Daimyo refused us. As you may not know, he has recently begun making funding cuts to Hidden Sand while simultaneously outsourcing to hidden villages offering cheaper wages. While he saves money, we stagnate, without funding or income. The Daimyo's son has already crossed the boarder under the protective guard of a Shinobi team from Hidden Rock, an insult we cannot forgive." Temari passed the file to Kankuro as Baki momentarily paused to collect his thoughts.

"So what do you want us to do?" She asked.

"Assassinate him, under the guise of Hidden Rock Shinobi." Baki explained, getting a look of shock from both Temari and Kankuro. Gaara simply stood where she was stoically, accepting the file from Kankuro as she did so.

"You want us to trick the Wind Daimyo into thinking his son was murdered by Hidden Rock?" Kankuro asked, becoming even more confused when Baki nodded his head in confirmation. "You want us to assassinate one of our own nobles?" He added, repeating himself in disbelief.

"The death of the Daimyo's son is a serious offense. We'd be executed if we were caught. And if we aren't, that could spark a war between Wind and Earth." Temari wasn't entirely sure what the rationalization behind this mission was, but she wasn't liking the sound of it.

"In the long run, a war would only benefit us. Shinobi are tools of war; we become strong in times of battle, and weak in times of peace. However, war is not our goal here, though it would be a bonus if it were to come to that." Baki coughed to clear his throat before continuing.

"We want to teach the Wind Daimyo a lesson. If his son is killed by enemy ninja, then the chances he will outsource to other villages will decrease. At the very least, we won't have to worry about Hidden Rock taking any more of our missions." Baki said. For a moment, the room was silent after that as Temari and Kankuro absorbed that information. It sounded crazy, but a mission was a mission.

"Is this the one you want me to kill?" Gaara asked, lifting a photo from the file and holding it out. Baki nodded.

"Yes, that's the Wind Daimyo's son. This is a top secret B rank mission, and as such you cannot let anyone know of this or identify you as members of Hidden Sand." Baki said. Gaara closed the folder and tossed it across the room, earning the attention of the other three.

"Temari and Kankuro's jutsu are too obvious. Hidden Rock doesn't have Fuuton users or puppet masters. I can disguise my sand as Doton jutsu; it would be best if I did this alone." Gaara said simply. Both her siblings looked like they wanted to protest, but a single glance from her silenced them before they even began. It seemed they were still afraid; just as well.

"You'll still need to get past his bodyguards. We can distract them, at least." Temari finally got up the courage to say. Gaara turned to glare at her for a moment before looking away, much to Temari's relief.

"Whatever." Gaara muttered dismissively.

"Take this." Baki said, throwing a forehead protector to Gaara. She caught it reflexively and looked at the surface, seeing the symbol of Hidden Rock.

"We only have the one, so Gaara will have to perform the assassination alone. I suggest you all change your clothes before you go. You'll give yourself away dressed as you are." Baki said. They all nodded in response.

"Let's go." Gaara commanded, turning towards the door with her siblings following suit.

--

Tanuki

--

This is what she lived for, what she devoted every waking moment of her day towards. Gaara was a weapon, it was all she knew. Her father directed her and she struck with the same certainty as any sword, slew her targets with the same lack of mercy that you would get from any explosive note. A weapon did not question its master, it did not voice concern. It was simply directed, and where it was directed, things died. This was the all encompassing truth of her existence. It defined her existence.

It was for this reason that Gaara took missions so seriously. She was a far more sophisticated weapon than a mere blade. It wasn't enough to simply kill, she had to kill without being noticed, and she had to do it quickly and efficiently. She also had to kill only specific targets. Collateral damage was unacceptable from the ultimate weapon. Bystanders could not be involved. They would only risk identifying her. The target's servants could not be involved. It was critical to the mission that they only catch brief glimpses of her, enough to falsely identify her as a Hidden Rock assassin and nothing more. Most importantly, her siblings could not be involved. As much as their presence annoyed her, she couldn't kill them, couldn't _harm_ them, not on a mission. A weapon that killed friend and foe in the same strike was worthless.

She refused to be considered worthless.

It was with this thought in mind that she forced down her irritation at having to work with the two. This marked the 9th mission they had carried out together, none of which Gaara was particularly fond of. While her siblings were by no means bad ninja, and were each skilled in their own rights, she couldn't help but feel they got in her way.

She hated their presence, just as she was sure they hated her. Though it was easy enough to ignore her brother, Temari was a constant irritation, flaunting everything she had that Gaara had been denied so flippantly. Gaara was so very tempted to kill her every time she looked at her. She'd even tried on several occasions. She wasn't sure whether she was happy or not that she had thus far failed.

"Are you ready?" The voice of her sister gave Gaara pause, turning to the elder girl who had just approached. She was dressed in a manner Gaara had never seen her in. She had let her hair down, where it now reached just past her shoulders. She had also covered her face in a liberal amount of makeup and was dressed in a less than proper kimono. Gaara knew the choice in clothing came from a need for mobility, something a real kimono seriously hindered, and that the make up was necessary to make her harder to identify. Despite that, she couldn't help but feel that the whole ensemble made her sister look like a common prostitute, or a courtesan at best.

How simple would it be to just crush her to death? Her sand coated the ground around them, waiting eagerly. It would hardly take any effort at all...

"Gaara, are you listening?" Gaara shook her head, remembering that they were still on a mission. A proper weapon did not kill allies without reason. She had to resist that urge.

"I'm fine. What's the situation?" She asked, picking up the Hidden Rock headband and tying it firmly in place around her forehead, finishing up her disguise. It covered up her scar well and did wonders to keep her hair out of her eyes.

"There are 8 in all: The target, 4 servants and a ninja team of 3. Kankuro is keeping an eye on them now. They'll be in position in a few minutes." Temari explained, going over the specifics of the set up. The plan was a simple one. Sand spies had recently discovered a division of sorts amongst the Hidden Rock ninja. Disguised as she was, Gaara could simply take out the three ninja and the target and her status as a Hidden Rock ninja wouldn't be questioned. The servants would return to the Wind Daimyo and claim that Hidden Rock betrayed them, and the Hidden Rock would have no choice but to suspect their own ninja.

"You sure it's them?" Gaara asked, straightening out her chuunin vest and once again examining the rest of the outfit. She had no choice but to drop the Armor of Sand, leaving herself feeling strangely naked. She was also experiencing the odd feeling of being too light once more, though she had started to get used to that.

"Positive. Trust your older sister on this one." Temari stated confidently, winking at Gaara. Gaara said nothing in response, simply tightening her belt one last time before heading off. Temari's job was done; now it was up to her.

She could feel her sand sliding across the ground just behind her as she walked, knowing that it was too obvious as it was and would give her away. With a brief moment of concentration, the sand started to sink, diving into the ground beneath Gaara's feet. Down there, it would be out of the way, and in a perfect position to start her attack.

It didn't take long for the group to round the corner, heading up the mountain path towards Gaara's position on the bend. She simply stood and waited in the middle of the road, waiting for them to come into view.

"What the-"

"Who're you?!" The Hidden Rock ninja were the first to notice her. Unsurprising. She could feel her sand at work, grinding and digging through the earth beneath her, breaking it up into pieces.

"Doton." Gaara muttered, making several superfluous hand signs. "Bishin no jutsu."

With a mighty heave, the sand rose, pushing the rock and earth up above it. A path of broken ground seemed to shoot across the gap between Gaara and the group, ending just in front of the ninja and exploding in a rain of dirt.

"An assassin!"

"Get him!" The three ninja all drew swords suddenly and rushed towards Gaara, seemingly abandoning the idea of using jutsu. That was odd, she didn't realize the Hidden Rock were kenjutsu users. It didn't matter though. They were all going to die anyway.

Gaara made a few more random hand signs, ending on a snake seal. Her sand went to work cutting apart the earth in the middle of the road before exploding upward just as one of the three ninja stepped into the area. A haze of small chunks of rock sharpened into blades by the sand tore his leg to a mangled heap of flesh, leaving him with no options but to lay there and bleed and cry out in pain.

Gaara casually ducked a slash from one of the other two ninja, pulling a kunai from her belt and burying it in his chest for his effort. Her sand was already tearing apart the ground under him and with a gesture he was gone, sucked into the earth by the cavity she had opened up before being torn apart by her sand. The earth did a fine job of muffling his screams.

"Doton." Gaara began, going through several more hand seals as she glared at the final ninja. He was trembling in fear, having barely moved from his last position upon seeing the fates of his two comrades. "Chuushin no Jutsu."

Her sand finished with the buried ninja and cut a swath through the road. With a grunt of effort, Gaara practically turned the ground before her inside out, the dirt and stone buried in the ground erupting to the surface as if she had buried explosive notes in the area. The final ninja never even saw his death coming. He simply vanished beneath a cloud of dirt and stone.

By the time the dirt and dust settled, the servants and target had already fled back the way they came. They were too slow, however. Much too slow. The world almost blurred around her as she moved, still unused to moving so little weight. She was upon her target in an instant, her hands wrapping around his fat neck and stopping him fast, pulling him around and slamming him against a wall.

"Aaah! Please don't kill me! You don't wanna kill me!" The man blubbered, averting his eyes and holding up his hands between them in warding gestures. Something was...off.

"...You're not him." Gaara muttered, recalling the face of their target from the file. This was not the son of the Daimyo. She didn't know who this was.

"No, I'm just a servant! Those ninja told us to dress up like this. We were supposed to be decoys! Please don't hurt me!" He stuttered, still trying to ward her away.

Gaara's eyes narrowed and her grip tightened. Decoy? Then those ninja were fake as well? No wonder they were so pathetic. Mere servants; simple bodyguards, if their desire to face her was any indication. She didn't notice the man's choked out grunts or his weak grabs at her forearm as she tightened her grip further. She continued to brood on this turn of events, increasing the force she applied to his neck as her frustration grew. It wasn't long before his struggles stopped..

"Is that him?" The voice of her sister sent a wave of irritation down her spine. This was Temari's fault. She failed this mission because her sister had been too incompetent to spot a decoy. She killed the wrong target because of Temari's foolishness. A good weapon did _not_ fail.

"No. It wasn't. This was just a decoy." Gaara growled, finally releasing the fat man's neck as she turned a glare on her sister. "I should kill you for this."

"Wh...what? Just calm down, Gaara. How was I supposed to know they would have a decoy?" Temari spoke. She looked a bit afraid, a bit cautious. Good. She should be afraid.

"It was your job to track the target's position and report back to me. If you can't do something so simple, what good are you?" Gaara turned away from her sister, looking down the road in annoyance. She still had a target to kill, only now she had no idea where he was or what he was doing.

Temari growled a bit under her breath, her anger rising. How dare he suggest that this was somehow her fault!

"Gaara! Temari!" Kankuro called out, rounding the corner and stopping before his two siblings. He spotted the corpses and his face sank slightly.

"You ran into the decoys? Damn. I just spotted the real team up ahead. They took a different route. Looks like its just the ninja team and the Daimyo's son." He explained, taking note of the scarred road and the bodies of the fallen servants. Jeez, Gaara didn't hold back, even against decoys...

"Where are they?" Gaara asked, turning towards Kankuro with a hard look, noticing the fear in his eyes and the apprehension on his face.

"They're probably in the next town by now. If we're lucky, they'll be staying the night." He explained, gulping slightly from the intensity of Gaara's gaze.

"At least Kankuro is good for something." Gaara muttered, turning towards Temari. "Perhaps if you weren't born a woman, you wouldn't be so useless."

Temari froze. The anger and indignation clear on her face as her hands balled into tight fists. She recognized that tone, that look of distaste. That wasn't Gaara talking. It was her father. Even the words sounded like his, though she had never heard them said before. The fact Gaara would dare say something like that to her was bad enough, the fact he was quoting their father made it infinitely worse.

Not for the first time in her life, Temari wished she had the courage to slap her little 'brother.' She knew she would not find it, however.

"You two go after the servants that ran off, make sure they don't do anything unexpected. I'll finish the mission alone." Temari heard Gaara say. Kankuro didn't argue. He wouldn't have the guts to argue. She didn't answer, however, instead seeing fit to just glare at Gaara.

"Can you handle that?" Gaara asked, turning her impassive gaze onto her sister. Temari continued to glare, a bit of sweat dripping down her brow.

"Yeah. No problem." She replied half heartedly.

"Good." Gaara replied monotonously.

--

"They're late." a man said irritably, spinning a small, curved blade around his fingers in agitation. Motou Katashi was not happy. Far from it, in fact. From the beginning this mission had been a pain, and the fact that those servants were taking so long to reach town only added to it.

"They're servants; incompetent, really. What can be expected of them?" Another at the table said loudly, grabbing a piece of food off the table and biting into it greedily. This was the main reason for Motou's annoyance; the son of the Wind Daimyo. More than once he had the urge to slap the fat, disgusting pig of a man, but resisted. Despite how insufferable he was, this mission was too important to botch things. Getting the business of the Wind Daimyo was something to covet, and the political victory over the Hidden Sand was simply enormous. If everything went well, this mission would be a stepping stone towards a great number of victories over their rivals to the south. That had been why he was being so cautious, and why the tardiness was so aggravating.

"Why do you think we dressed your servants in our clothes and sent them along the more well used path? If they are late, they may very well have been attacked. Possibly killed." Motou explained, hoping the fat oaf would understand the seriousness of the situation. He simply scoffed, taking another bite of his food.

"Good riddance to the lot of them. I didn't like them anyway." He said through a mouthful of food, spitting small pieces across the table as he did so. Motou had to resist the urge to groan in disgust.

"Eh? What's this pretty little thing?" The idiot muttered, drawing Motou's gaze towards the door. His eyebrow rose as he looked at her, a look that he could not help but prolong. Her hair was the color of roses, falling around her head like a curtain of silk, reaching just past her shoulder blades. Her face was pristine, almost unreal in its perfection. There was not a single blemish to be found on it, from her delicately curved eyebrows to her perfect lips. Her body was the thing of fantasies, curving in all the right places in just the right ways. The only thing off about her was her state of dress, that of a worn and skimpy kimono that looked haphazardly put on, as if the wearer didn't know or care how it was properly worn.

Were it not for that simple imperfection on an otherwise flawless image, he'd have suspected the woman to be a genjutsu. Or a kitsune in human guise, had he believed in such fairy tales.

"Bring her over here." The fat man said, leering at the woman in obvious lust. Motou boggled at the order.

"What?" He asked, disbelieving what he heard.

"You heard me. I pay you, you have to do what I say. You only have to look at the way she dresses to see she's a whore. Bring her to me." He ordered again, not even looking at the chuunin across from him as he continued to leer at the woman across the small inn.

"Shushou, she's been looking this way since she's come in." One of the other ninja pointed out. Motou turned around again, seeing the woman sitting at another table, staring at them without even attempting to hide it. He turned back to his own table, looking between himself and the others. Four men, dressed as simple servants, none of them looking to be worth more than the clothing they wore. No woman of that quality would give a second look to such a group, especially a whore. One look at her and he was sure her price was beyond what any commoner could pay.

'Then why is she looking at us so intently?' He wondered. He didn't like the options he could think of one bit.

"Are you deaf, ninja, or just stupid? Do I have to get one of your lackeys to do it? Bring me that woman." The Daimyo's son insisted, finally taking his eyes off of her long enough to glare at the captain sitting across from him.

"That woman could easily be an assassin sent for your head. Do you want to die tonight?" Motou warned in hushed tones, not wanting to chance letting the woman in question overhear him.

"Ha! Her? Preposterous. She's just a woman. I use woman like her every day; worth nothing more than a good fuck. If she's lucky I'll even let her warm the bed when I'm done with her, rather than sleeping on the floor like she deserves." With these words, he rose from the table, clearing intending to go get the woman himself.

--

Gaara had decided that a change of plans had been in order, one that required more stealth and subtlety than she was used to. She had an unknown enemy of unknown ability in a crowded area. Witnesses were a bad thing, and simply killing anyone that saw her would be an unacceptable amount of collateral damage. The three Hidden Rock Shinobi and the Daimyo's son were as good as dead, but she needed to strike at them in seclusion. And to do that, she needed to get close enough to get them alone.

It was for this reason that Gaara was entering the small inn using a variant of her armor of sand, dressed in one of the spare kimono Temari had brought with her. She hadn't been entirely sure of how to properly put it on, but she assumed she had done a good enough job of it.

Almost immediately, she spotted her target. The Daimyo's son was easy enough to recognize, but the fact they were all dressed as servants did not help them, since she knew of the decoy. Gaara let the inn tenant lead her to a table without a word, all the while never taking her eyes off the table of four. The fat one wasn't even worth considering. He was a non-threat if she ever saw one. The other three, however, required some observation.

One of the ninja had been spinning a dagger around on his fingers when she had walked in and had a short sword of some kind leaning against the table beside him. An obvious weapon user, and likely the commanding officer, judging from the way the other two were sitting to his side wordlessly. She couldn't tell much of the other two. They appeared young, possibly even genin, but otherwise had no clues as to their skill set or fighting style. It was a shame they had the foresight to disguise themselves as servants. She would have had an easier time of it had they been wearing their usual equipment.

"You, woman, come with me." Gaara blinked in confusion before looking up, seeing the Daimyo's son standing in front of her table. She had been paying him so little attention she didn't even notice him come over. His words registered a second later and Gaara rose wordlessly, knowing an opportunity when she saw it.

The man put one hand around her waist and pulled her close to him, much to Gaara's annoyance. She made no attempt to struggle, however, instead letting the filthy excuse of a man lead her away from the table towards the three ninja.

"I'll be retiring to my room. You three do what you want." The Daimyo's son spoke as he approached the table, not looking like he intended to stop at all. The two subordinates showed no reaction, though the one she assumed was in charge looked concerned about the idea. Despite that, none of them rose to stop the man as he lead Gaara away towards the room she assumed he had gotten for himself.

"Heh. Just you wait, bitch. I'll be having some fun with you tonight." The fat man muttered lecherously, lifting his free hand to her breasts and groping her roughly. Even through the sand, the gesture was enough to make Gaara grimace in disgust. She still didn't protest, though. They walked a good distance, seemingly to the opposite side of the establishment to reach the room. Gaara couldn't have asked for a better location. Half the rooms they passed were even empty. Chances were, no one would hear a commotion.

As the door closed behind him, the Daimyo's son flung Gaara across the room with little consideration, causing her to land on the bed heavily. It was clear to her that the man had no tact, made all the more apparent as he leapt on top of her and began to tear her clothes off with wild abandon. A growl rose in her throat as her kimono was stripped away, getting even stronger as the man's hands began to roam. She waited, listing for any sign that the ninja had followed their mark to his room.

She heard none. Just as the man atop her roughly tore her underwear away.

"Enough." Gaara announced. In a flash, he was off her. He didn't even know what hit him as the sand she had covered herself in lifted from her body and dragged the man across the room. He was pinned to the wall in an instant, immobilized completely by her sands.

"Wha...What is this?! You bitch! Let me go!" He shouted, struggling against the heavy sand that was pressing him to the beams behind him. It wouldn't budge an inch. His eyes fell on his captor then, growing in surprise upon seeing her true form. She seemed to have lost a good 10 years of age, as the naked girl before him now couldn't have been any older than 12 or 13.

"You little brat. You'll regret this! I will break you! Maybe a few years as my personal fuck toy will teach you some respect!" He shouted, only to find the sand flowing up to cover his mouth.

"You're annoying. I'll enjoy tearing the flesh from your bones." Gaara muttered with a glare, her hand starting to clench as she willed the sand to start grinding into the man. The door flew open suddenly and the three Hidden Rock ninja rushed in, drawing her attention away from her recent catch.

"What the..." Motou announced in surprise. He had been expecting to see the woman with a dagger to the man's throat, or something like that. But a naked young girl standing in the room with the man he was supposed to be protecting plastered to the wall in what looked like...sand? That was not the kind of thing he was used to.

"Looks like you three will have to die after all." Gaara muttered, breaking the ninja from their momentary shock and inciting them to action. The two younger ninja each ran into the room in a flanking motion while Motou's hand flashed, sending a curved blade sailing through the air towards Gaara's head. With a gesture, a small piece of sand hit the weapon in mid air and changed its course, sinking into the fat man's chest almost at the same time Gaara released him from the wall.

"You killed the Daimyo's son." Gaara announced as the man in question hit the ground with a thud, pierced through the heart. Her sand coiled around her protectively as she jumped back, just in time to avoid Motou's second curved blade.

"Doton: Sekijun no jutsu!" the two other nin cried out in unison, causing Gaara to vault through the air as a pair of stalagmites shot through the floorboards in an attempt to vivisect her. She landed just behind Motou, who immediately spun and slashed only to have his blade sink into a wall of sand.

"You betrayed the mission, so these two tried to stop you." Gaara said simply as Motou struggled to pull his weapon from the sand. "But they were no match for you."

The sand twisted around, yanking the sword from his hands and stopping a blow that came in from behind her. With a flick of the wrist, her sand spat Motou's sword back out, taking the young ninja full in the chest and carrying him far enough to nail him to the opposite wall.

"You killed that one with your sword." Gaara stated, jumping to avoid another stalagmite while simultaneously slamming Motou into the wall with her sand, pinning him there. The last ninja trembled slightly as Gaara turned on him, letting loose a fist full of shuriken that Gaara avoided almost casually.

"Those shuriken missed you, just like all his previous attacks." Gaara said to Motou as the young ninja hastily went through some more hand signs.

"D...Doton!" He stuttered nervously, "Ishigaki no jutsu!"

Gaara rose an eyebrow as a wall of stone shot up through the floor, effectively cutting her off from the other half of the room. What was this? A defense? Did he intend to escape? There was no exit on that half of the room.

"You were actually the one to use this Jutsu." Gaara stated, turning away from the wall to look at the ninja she still had pinned to the other wall. "It was so you could do this."

Gaara threw her hand behind her, pulling her sand and the ninja with it across the room and smashing it into the stone wall the idiot ninja had erected. With a resounding crack, it began to tip, then fell. She couldn't help but grin at the sound of the other ninja's scream just before he was crushed to death.

"Wh...What is this? Why are you doing this? What the hell are you anyway?!" Motou screamed, struggling against his prison to no avail. Gaara glared at the man a bit in annoyance, her hand twitching. Motou didn't like it at all when the sand collapsed slightly in response to that twitch.

"I'm not doing this, you are. Weren't you paying attention? I was never here. All of this was your doing. That is the way it will be seen." Gaara explained, raising her hand slightly and grinned eagerly as her sand lifted Motou into the air.

"As for you, you were never found. They will assume you escaped and fled. You'll probably be declared a nukenin. Of course, we both know you won't be escaping." The sand rose to cover Motou's mouth as she spoke, finishing just as she gestured with her fingertips. The chuunin screamed into the muffling sand as loudly as he could as he felt the small particles of earth bore through his shoes and into his feet, slowly but surely eradicating them into nothing.

"I don't like being interrupted. I had wanted to enjoy that fool's death, but because of you he had to die quickly." Another gesture and Motou's gloves were shredded, followed by his fingernails being peeled off. Only then did the sands start on his fingers themselves, eating away at them ever so slowly until there was nothing left. His screams would have been deafening, had she allowed him to scream.

"You will be taking his place." Gaara grinned, flexing her fingers and sending her sand to work. She couldn't risk letting him scream. Despite the seclusion offered by the room, she was sure the rest of the inn would be able to hear him once she really got going. Instead, she pulled her sand away, letting it coil around her and form into her familiar cloak, finally concealing her nudity. Now, she only supported him by the shoulders, neck and head. The rest of his body was open to the air.

He lashed out pointlessly with his leg, trying to hit her despite being held far too far away. In response, she lashed out with a piece of her cloak, shredding the offending limb like a piece of paper. He bled quite nicely, she decided, watching as the crimson liquid erupted from his leg and coated a good portion of the room. She was quick to cover his wounds with sand, however. She couldn't have him bleeding to death so soon.

"You were so sloppy when you killed your comrades. There's blood everywhere." Gaara said simply, lashing out with her sand again to tear into the chuunin's chest. Again, she quickly covered his wounds, but the initial blast of blood had been plenty.

"It doesn't look like their's yet, but I'll be sure they look just as bad as the room when I'm done with you." Another lash of sand sent blood spraying across the walls and bed. Motou screamed pointlessly into the sand as the girl tore him apart, bracing himself as another lash took his arm off entirely, shredding it thoroughly to ensure all the blood in it was freed.

It seemed the sand itself was lapping at the blood stained floorboards in between strikes, almost like it was drinking it up. With every blow, with every bit of blood he lost, the girl's smile grew wider, more crazed. She was openly laughing as a drill of sand put a hole straight through his lower abdomen, making him scream even more.

He could only pray that he would pass out from the pain, be spared from this torture long enough to die from the blood loss. He knew he wouldn't, though. He was trained not to. Another blow and his blood sprayed all over his tormentor, coating her naked body and face. It only served to make her all the more frightening, smiling wickedly while covered in blood.

Gaara smiled at her handiwork, looking around in admiration at the blood soaked room. By this point there was so little of it that had been spared a marking of red. Somewhere in the back of her mind she heard laughing and encouragement. Her sand twisted on the ground in preparation for a strike, soaking up blood off the floor like an eager cat going after a saucer of milk The more blood she spilled, the more her sand drank, the louder and more pronounced that thing in her mind seemed to get.

Gaara chuckled slightly as she looked into Motou's eyes, seeing the fear there, the pain. It wanted her to hurt him, It wanted her to make him suffer. It liked it when he bled, when Gaara made him bleed. Another blow, more blood, more laughs. Do it again, little one. Skin him. Shred him. Crush his bones. Hurt him more, little one. Make. Him. **Suffer.**

The other arm vanished in a flash of sand and Gaara couldn't help but laugh at how easy it had been. **Well done, my little one. You're so good at making him bleed.**

Gaara looked at the chuunin hanging in the air in front of her, no longer truly recognizable as being human, she pondered over what to do next. She could hear Motou's muffled screams through the sand covering his face and decided to take a small break. Slowly but surely, his screams began to subside. Once he was silent, she let the sand around his mouth fall away.

"K...kill me...please...just let me die..." Motou managed to say, barely above a whisper. Gaara's smile fell slightly as she cocked her head to the side in a bit of confusion, thinking over his words.

'Should I just end it? Crush his skull?' **Why stop now, little one? His suffering has only begun.**

'He's already bled so much. Most of the room is covered.' **But he still has more blood to give.**

'I still need to shred the others. This much blood is suspicious.' **What fun is there in tormenting a corpse? That can wait.**

**Mother knows best, my little one.**

"Alright, Mother." Gaara muttered, raising her eyes back to the chuunin she still had in her grasp. With a glance, the sand once again rose to cover his mouth, causing the fear to come back to his eyes.

"I'm not finished with you yet. Mother still wants your blood." Gaara couldn't help but laugh as her sand struck again, happy to hear mother's voice laughing with her as she did.

--

Night had long since fallen, leaving the only illumination up to the moonlight that ever so often fell behind the clouds. Temari and Kankuro had followed the servants for several miles before doubling back, both deciding that it was safe to assume they were heading back to Wind country.

Temari sighed slightly as she sat on her pack, watching her younger brother make a pile of leaves dance in the air with his chakra puppetry. All they could do was wait, wait for Gaara to get done doing what he always did and hope for the best.

"How do you think the mission went?" Temari asked, the boredom and silence finally getting to her. Kankuro shrugged, the leaves he was controlling bobbing in the air a bit in response to the movement.

"The decoy was unexpected, but we have what we wanted. Those servants ran all the way to the border without stopping, you can be sure they'll tell the Daimyo that a Hidden Rock assassin attacked them." Kankuro said simply, moving his fingers about to make the small leaf in his control jump and twist.

"And if I know Gaara, the Daimyo's son is long dead." He added. Silence fell on the two of them again for a short while after that. As Kankuro grabbed a second leaf with his other hand and began to make the two fight, Temari worked up the will to ask another question.

"Have you ever noticed something...weird...about Gaara?" She asked. The leaves fell to the ground lifelessly as Kankuro turned towards his sister with a confused look on his face.

"What? Other than the fact he's a fucking monster?" Kankuro asked sarcastically. Temari rolled her eyes, marveling at her little brother's obliviousness.

"Yes, other than that, stupid." Temari grumbled. Kankuro turned away and shrugged again, sending out a chakra string to his discarded leaves in the process.

"I don't know, I never really paid attention to him. The guy's scary as hell. The less I have to be around him, the better." Kankuro muttered. The leaf jumped into the air again, twirling around a few times before land perfectly on its stem.

"Though he did look a little strange. Last time we saw him, he still looked like a little kid, you know? Like he hadn't even hit puberty yet. But now he's got that really long hair and his face didn't seem the same at all. It was definitely different." Kankuro turned back around towards Temari, letting the leaf fall over without his support.

"I try not to look him directly in the face though, so I can't really say what it was. He just seemed...off, or something. Maybe he finally hit a growth spurt?" He shrugged at his own suggestion.

"I don't think that's it..." Temari sighed a bit, looking down at the pack she was sitting on. She had always had a few suspicions about their youngest sibling. She could remember from when they were little kids how Kankuro always treated her like she had the plague, typical little boy reaction to an older sister. Gaara never did that, though. She had originally figured that it was due to Shukaku, but when they were younger Gaara always treated her with...well, admiration was the best way she could put it.

That had slowly changed though. Once they had been put on a team together, Gaara's looks of admiration had become more bitter. He always looked at people coldly and with general disdain, but he seemed to save a special amount of disgust for her, almost as if he were...envious? Then there was all the times he tried to kill her unprovoked, which only added to her belief that Gaara disliked her specifically for some reason.

And now he had apparently grown out his hair, and his face had definitely looked different than the last time she had seen him. Kankuro hadn't been able to put his finger on it, but Temari knew what she saw there. His face did not look like what you'd expect from a boy going through puberty. Quite the opposite, in fact. Not to mention that when they got back to their camp, they had found Gaara's Hidden Rock outfit discarded on the ground, and some of Temari's own clothing were missing...

"Have you ever seen Gaara undressed or anything?" Temari asked, causing Kankuro to twitch and the leaf he had been playing with to tear into several pieces by the sudden jerk of his hand.

"What? No. Hell no. Why the hell would I have seen that? If Gaara even changes his clothes its news to me. What kind of question is that?" Kankuro demanded, obviously confused by the comment.

"I think Gaara might be-"

"Might be what?" Temari's words died in her throat as she and Kankuro both turned towards the voice. There, standing in the moonlight, stood Gaara. His entire body was hidden beneath the long sand cloak that he constantly wore, but neither of the two were looking at that. What froze the elder siblings in their tracks was the crazed look in Gaara's eyes, and the splatter of blood adorning his cheek.

"I might be what?" Gaara repeated, looking at Temari with those soul splitting eyes. She swallowed hard, suddenly feeling like there was a rock stuck in her throat.

"I...I was going to say that you might be c...coming back soon, Gaara." Temari stuttered. Something was definitely different about Gaara, something profound, primal. It was like standing in the presence of a hungry beast, staring into you with eyes that seemed to tell you just how sure your death was. Neither of them had ever seen Gaara like this.

"Smart." Gaara said simply, walking towards Temari and their packs. She quickly leapt off her back and skittered away to Kankuro's side, letting Gaara pass her as he approached his pack.

"How'd it go, Gaara?" Kankuro managed to say, watching Gaara from behind as he bent down to his pack and pulled out some of his spare clothes. The sand cloak fell away then, revealing Gaara's nudity and showing the both of them that his body was covered with just as much blood as his face.

"They're dead. Mother was happy to drink their blood." Gaara answered, putting on her clothes with her back to her siblings. Temari stared, unable to draw her eyes away from the distinctly feminine outline her sibling's body seemed to follow. Kankuro turned to her then, mouthing the word 'mother' in confusion while Temari just continued to stare.

"Gaara...Are you...Okay?" Temari asked, looking at Gaara as she turned around, once again fully clothed. The shield of sand rose from the ground and once again coiled around Gaara before forming into her cloak, just as the girl bent down to pick up her pack.

"Never better." She replied, walking past the two of them towards the road that led to the boarder. Temari and Kankuro just stood where they were and watched her go, before collecting themselves enough to get their own packs and follow after Gaara.

"Does that count as something weird about him?" Kankuro whispered, leaning in towards his sister without taking his eyes off the figure in front of them. "I thought I was gonna die."

"Didn't you see that?" Temari whispered back, gesturing to Gaara.

"See what? The fact he's fucking nuts? The fact he's covered in blood? The fact he looked at us like he wanted to _eat us?_ Yeah, I saw that." Kankuro replied harshly. Temari groaned in frustration.

"No, you idiot. Gaara's body! Didn't you look at it?" She insisted.

"Why would I? I saw he was covered in blood and naked and looked away. I don't want to see that." Kankuro replied. Arching an eyebrow at the way Temari was looking at him. It looked like she was resisting the urge to strangle him. "Why? What about it?"

"Nothing. Never mind." Temari sighed again and sped up a bit, trying to get away from Kankuro without getting too close to Gaara. She knew what she saw. This plus all the other evidence pretty much cemented it into her mind as a certainty. Gaara...was a girl. But that just raised the question of why he pretended to be a boy for so long.

"_Perhaps if you weren't born a woman, you wouldn't be so useless." _

Temari almost stopped walking as the memory came to her, remembering the way Gaara looked at her when she said those words. It was a quote. She knew that those words did not belong to her sister.

'Oh Gaara...What did that bastard do to you?' Temari wondered, her thoughts turning to their father.

--

To be Continued

Next Time: With the day of graduation upon them, Naruto is assigned to a 3 man team under a jounin sensei. Told of his past and what he is truly capable of for their own safety, how will his new comrades react to the boy slowly descending into madness? And what will they do when they find themselves with no choice but to rely on each other on a mission well beyond their abilities? All this and more in the next installment of But for the Grace of God: Of Making Waves.

Ryo-Wolf


	5. Of Making Waves

Disclaimer: Naruto is the property of whoever it was that made it.

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He awoke with a start, quickly doubling over as the pain began. Even after four years, his scars still hurt sometimes, still burned so much he'd think they were fresh. It was the memories of that night that did it, he was certain. It was always after one of the nightmares that they would start to act up.

"Stop..." Sasuke muttered, clutching his hand against his face while holding his mid section with the other one, a cold sweat slowly making his sheets damp. Why did they have to hurt so much? He felt like he was still on fire, like he had never gotten out. He was still trapped, still helpless. The pain just wouldn't go away.

"Stop!" He commanded, still hunched in his bed. Slowly, the pain started to subside, and with it he slowly uncurled, releasing a breath he hadn't realized he was holding. It took him a moment longer to gather his bearings.

He was in his bed, in his home. Or rather, the home he had made for himself. His real home was gone, burnt to the ground with the rest of the district. The only building that still stood as more than a burnt out husk was the library in which he now lived, and even it was worthy of being condemned. His room was formerly the history section, his bed a mattress inside an overturned bookcase that had no shelves. He had managed to convert the storage room into a semi-functional bathroom, which was where he was currently headed.

As the water cascaded over his body, washing the sweat and the smell of terror off him, his mind turned back to his dreams. Or rather, nightmares. He could never remember them with any clarity, which gave him no end of frustration. He would wake up with such a sense of horror and he could never figure out why. All he could remember were the flames, the burns, and that horrible voice beside his ear.

"_Don't Scream." _Sasuke jumped, shaking his head at his own cowardice and leaned against the wall of his makeshift shower. His eyes caught sight of himself and he immediately shut them, having no desire to see his scars. They were a constant reminder, both of his own weakness and the hubris of his entire clan. No one would ever tell him how the fires started, or why they got out of control. No matter who he asked, the response was always the same: they changed the subject.

He had a pretty good idea of it, though. He lived in a library, after all. He had gone over every scroll, every tome the Uchiha had about Katon jutsu. The Uchiha thought themselves the masters of fire, and yet there was not a single technique in their vast library for controlling fire. They could _create_ fire, sure; shaping and molding it expertly into a force of destruction. But control it? No, that was beyond the so called fire masters. Once a flame was made, it was up to nature to quench it. The Uchiha were like children playing with matches. Their pride disgusted him. It was almost appropriate that they would all disappear beneath the ash. He was all that was left of the Uchiha 'fire masters;' Sasuke and his scars, and he wanted nothing to do with their fires.

He scoffed to himself, stepping out of the shower and grabbing a ratty looking towel from a nearby shelf to dry off. He dressed quickly, once again shutting his eyes to perform the memorized actions. He pulled on his boxers first, before setting upon the bandages, wrapping his legs and arms. After that came the rest of his clothes. Undershirt, shirt, pants, shoes, jacket and headband.

With the job done, Sasuke turned to look in the broken mirror behind him. The entire bottom left corner had split off, showing Sasuke only the flawlessness of the right side of his face, the left lost beyond the edge of the glass. He smiled slightly at the sight, before taking a short step to the right and seeing his face for what it really was. Burnt. Scarred. Hideous.

With a deft move, he pulled on the oversized collar of his undershirt, pulling it up all the way until it covered the entire bottom half of his face, leaving only his eyes visible. He tested it a few times, moving about in ways he thought might cause the mask to fall down his face. Satisfied that it wouldn't, he turned and left. He had a graduation to attend.

-----

She flowed through the motions as she always did. Day after day. Morning after morning. It was formal, ritual, routine. She never swayed from the set stance, following it perfectly. Motion after motion. Move after move. There was no room for error nor interpretation.

"I will be okay." She muttered to herself, following through with her strikes, landing blow after gentle blow on the simple straw dummy that served as her opponent. It was motionless, accepting; just like always. Hit after hit. Blow after blow.

"We're graduating." She continued, punctuating the words with a familiar flourish of movement, interlaced with the same attacks that always followed that technique.

"I don't have to be in that classroom with Him anymore." Another pair of strikes, these somewhat harder, different from the norm.

"If He approaches me, I won't run. I can tolerate it, cause I won't see Him ever again." Several more strikes struck home, vibrating the dummy from the violent combo.

"If He talks to me, I won't scream. I can tolerate it, cause I won't see Him ever again." A spinning kick hits hard enough to nearly break the support beam running through the center of the dummy, followed by an unexpected flash of the wrist, and a flurry of blows peppering the dummy's abused torso as she continued to spin.

"If He gets put on my team..." She stopped at that, her spin ending with a palm thrust that seemed to crackle with her chakra. Her perception amplified exponentially as her blow approached its target, a single moment stretching out into eternity. She could see the dummy, the support beam inside it, and the wall behind it. Her Byakugan took in everything in the room as her hand struck. She could hear the impact of her palm against the thick padding of the dummy, could see her chakra punch through it like it wasn't there, straight into the support beam beneath. She watched, entranced, as her chakra tore into the wood, burning across the grain as it went. It was over in an instant, but to her it was a lifetime.

She was breathing heavily, eyes wide, her entire body shaking subtlety. It was alright, she told herself again. He wasn't there. He wouldn't be put on her team. There was no way they'd let that happen. Slowly, she calmed herself, sighing as her breathing got back under control. Hinata turned away from the dummy, stilling the shaking in her hands as she wiped the sweat from her brow. She could feel the excess blood slowly draining from her eyes and knew she had accidentally activated her Byakugan again. She was only glad that no one had been around to see it.

With a final sigh, Hinata left the room to shower and change, completely ignoring the sound of wood snapping or the thump that followed as the upper half of the dummy collided with the floor of the training hall.

---------

He breathed as he sat, bare of his usual jacket and glasses. Air in, air out. The colony still had use for his blood, and his blood needed oxygen. So, he continued to breathe. Air in, air out. Later, he would eat, for the colony still had use for his strength, and he needed the food for energy. So, he would eat. And later still, he would sleep, for the colony still had use for his body, and his body needed rest. So, he would sleep. That was the life of Shino. That was the life of all Aburame. All things for the colony, nothing greater than the safekeeping of the hive. Should the colony no longer need his blood, he would stop breathing. Should it no longer need his strength, he would stop eating. Should it no longer need his body, he would cast it aside.

"Graduation," He thought to himself, his mind turning towards the team he would likely end up on. They were important, too. Aburame served the Hokage. That was clan law. Hokage above all, second only to the safekeeping of the hive. All things for the colony, the colony for the Hokage. They served, and they were rewarded for their service. Like his ancestors before him, he too would serve, and he too would be rewarded. He was a colony, an Aburame hive. His kikaichu would serve his team well, of that he was certain. He didn't know who would be on his team, and frankly he didn't care. He only knew that he would have to do his best to keep them alive, so that they could in turn keep him alive, for the sake of the colony.

With a simple movement, he stood, reaching for his coat as the kikaichu crawling all over his body scurried into their burrows, deeper into the hive. They would come when he needed them, but for now they would crawl inside. He then reached for his glasses, waiting for the last of his insects to return to their homes before he put them in place as well. It was time, now. Graduation was waiting, and he would go, for the sake of the colony.

------------

She tied her headband into place on the top of her head and smiled into the mirror, checking herself over for any blemishes that needed touching up before turning her utmost attention to her hair, examining it from tip to root for anything that needed attention. Today was graduation, and thus perfection was key. It was her last chance to catch the eye of Sasuke before they were possibly split up. Well, unless they were put on the same team, of course, but she couldn't rely on being that lucky.

"_Don't worry about it, you'll definitely end up on the same team!" _She sighed as the thought came to her, her smile widening slightly. She slowly brushed her hair with absolute care as she imagined her future team. Sasuke, of course, but who else? Shino was nice. Very quiet, and always covered up with that jacket of his. A lot like Sasuke, actually. But she had heard that his family lived with bugs on them or something, and the thought of that creeped her out a little.

"_Kiba's hot. What about him?"_ She shook her head, almost blanching at the thought. He was nice and all, but he smelt like dog all the time, and was obnoxious to boot. Then there was Shikamaru and Chouji, but those guys stuck together so much she doubted they'd be separated. No room on the team for Sasuke.

'Who was that other kid in the class?' She thought to herself, still brushing her hair. That blonde one, who always sat in the corner and stared at the walls. _"Naduro or something..."_

"Whatever. Anyone's good, as long as Sasuke's there too." She said to herself, spotting a bit of dirt on her cheek she must have missed when she showered that morning and quickly wiped it away. She would have to give it her all to finally attract Sasuke's attention! He was in the top of the class, and the last survivor of a great clan. Plus his cold attitude and that mask made him so mysterious and alluring. She was just certain he was totally hot underneath it, he was just shy.

"Sakura! Hurry up or you'll be late!"

"I'm coming, mom! Jeez...." She sighed, rolling her eyes as she quickly examined herself all over one last time before heading towards the door.

-------------

"Ha ha! That was great, Akamaru! Mission accomplished!" Kiba said with a grin on his face, quickly throwing his coat back on as Akamaru followed close at his heels. It was another in a long line of pranks that the two could be proud of. It was almost a shame that he wouldn't get to see the look on the faces of the ninja that had to deal with that mess. It'd have made the effort all the more worth while.

Kiba slowed his run to a leisurely walk as Akamaru leapt from the ground to his head, barking and growling a few times as he got comfortable.

"Eh, it's fun though, right?" Kiba said, as if responding. Akamaru shot back with a few more barks, to which Kiba nodded his head in agreement.

"Yeah, I know what you mean. It would be nice if someone else would take up the cause. But if somebody's gotta go it, it might as well be us, you know?" Kiba asked. Akamaru barked quickly in agreement.

"End of the line." Kiba stopped and slowly turned, spotting three well armed masked ninja behind him. Ah, great. The AnBu caught up with him already? They were quicker than usual.

"You can't prove anything." Kiba said quickly, Akamaru barking a few words of agreement.

"Not the best choice of words, Inuzuka." One of the masked ninja replied. Kiba and Akamaru paused for a moment, feeling kinda silly for incriminating themselves.

Akamaru barked a few times, causing Kiba to pause.

"Heh, you don't have to tell me twice. So, how we gonna do this then?" The AnBu spared a look to one another in confusion, watching as Kiba seemed to discuss a course of action with his dog.

"Don't even think about running." One of the masked ninja said quickly, earning a low chuckle from Kiba.

"Too late for that. Jujin Bunshin!"

------------

Naruto sat in the middle of the floor, his eyes riveted to the intricate patterns on the wall. He was completely nude, save for a single leather band he wore like a necklace, tied to a plain looking rectangular pendant. With a slight grin, he held out his hand and his nostrils flared slightly as the smell of the wood burning reached them. From there, he began to work, moving his wrist and fingers ever so slightly, directing the small embers across the wall to continue his work. This was how Naruto spent his nights. He didn't sleep. No, sleep was simply out of the question. Sleep only brought the images, the sensations he didn't like. Flashes of teeth and claws and fear. He was always fighting in his sleep. Fighting something he didn't know, something he couldn't beat. But he fought it anyway. He never stopped. He was pretty sure he was fighting it even now, he just didn't know it. The images never came when he was awake. He liked it that way. They were unpleasant.

So instead, he merely rested. And when he wasn't resting, he was...decorating. Yes, that was a good word for it. He grinned slightly and opened his palm, the fire getting more intense as he burned a particularly complex pattern into the wooden walls of his home. His entire apartment was covered in such decorations. Walls, ceilings, floors, furniture. Anything that burned was not safe from his particular brand of art.

A neighbor's cat had once climbed in through his window one night a few weeks back. Naruto didn't like cats, didn't like how they looked. So he decided to decorate it, too. He smiled at the memory. The cat didn't like being decorated. It was still around, somewhere. He couldn't quite remember where he had put it when he was finished. Probably tucked in a corner somewhere, now that he thought about it. It had smelt pretty bad.

The view out his window started to brighten as the sun began to rise. It seemed the night was over, and Naruto slowly stood from his position as the last of the embers in his wooden wall burnt out. Today was graduation, he remembered. The day he would officially be a ninja and the first step towards becoming Hokage. So, Naruto began to get ready, turning out of his decorated bedroom and opening a decorated door to reach his decorated bathroom. He passed the decorated mirror, too charred to be of any use, to reach the decorated shower. He was already nude, and thus simply turned a decorated knob as water poured out of his decorated showerhead.

Naruto looked around the bathroom as the smell of sweat and ash was slowly washed away from him, admiring the decorations he had made across it and chuckling at some of the more specific and fanciful ones. He made no significant attempt to wash himself, simply standing beneath the water motionlessly, seemingly waiting for an unknown signal that would let him get out of the shower. After 10 minutes, almost exactly, Naruto blinked and turned off the shower, vapor rising from his body as all the liquid still on him simply evaporated with a thought.

"I'm hungry." Naruto decided, walking through his home towards his kitchen. This, too, was completely covered with Naruto's art, decorations down to individual utensils in each of his decorated drawers. A decorated bowl was filled with water and ramen noodles as Naruto grabbed some decorated chopsticks. With a glance, the water seemed to begin to boil, and with a little stirring, he began to eat. He didn't bother staying in one place, walking out of his kitchen with bowl in hand and wandering his home aimlessly as he ate.

Naruto finished his food as he arrived in his bedroom, looking down at the wooden bowl and chopsticks in his hand. Each burst into flames spectacularly, being completely destroyed in moments. Naruto wiped the ash from his hands and turned towards his closet, finally deciding to clothe himself. Boxers were followed by a pair of orange pants before grabbing a white shirt, pulling on a black and orange jacket over it, which he didn't bother zipping up. He pulled the small pendant out from under his shirt, letting it rest against the T-shirt he now wore.

He reached for his belt next, pulling it in place through the loops of his pants before attaching two small bags to it, one on the back, and one at his side. The one on the back was his tool kit, filled with various fun little ninja toys and sharp things. The other was a simple pouch, which was full of leaves. He took special care with that. Then came shoes, which he simply slipped on quickly.

"Headband." He muttered to himself, looking around and trying to find it. He had gotten it after the graduation test and thrown it somewhere, but couldn't remember where. After a moment of searching, he discovered it in the far corner, lying beside the remains of the decorated cat. He walked over and grabbed the headband, tying it to his belt and letting it dangle there. He didn't even give the corpse a second glance.

With that finished, Naruto headed for his front door. Graduation was waiting.

----------------------

Of Making Waves

----------------------

"It's not fair..." Sakura mumbled into her arms pitifully, still sulking over the fact she wasn't on the same team as Sasuke. And she had been so hopeful, too!

"Stop saying that! God damn, do you ever stop complaining?!" Kiba growled out, slamming his hand on the desk in frustration. He'd been sitting here patiently for the past _hour_ while pinky over there whined and bitched and sulked over whatever-the-hell it was she was upset about. A man could only ignore so much before he felt like snapping, and Kiba had passed that point 20 minutes ago.

"Shut up, Kiba! You wouldn't understand. I wanted to be on Sasuke-kun's team, not with you and that slacker who didn't even show up for graduation." Sakura shouted, getting up from her hunched over position to glare at Kiba.

"Jeez. Do you ever think of anything else? What's so great about that guy, anyway? He's not even Number One Rookie this year." Kiba retorted.

"He's got the highest grades in the class! He should have been Number One!" Sakura insisted, sitting back down as she did so.

"Barely, and his teamwork sucked. That's why Shikamaru beat him, you know." Kiba shot back.

"Oh come on, Shikamaru and Chouji are joined at the hip. That was hardly fair." Sakura said, still clearly upset over the whole thing. The Number One Rookie title was stolen from Sasuke! Mizuki must have been crazy to give it to Shikamaru just cause he was better at teamwork.

"Whatever. Think what you want." Kiba shrugged, "You know, your obsession is probably why they didn't put you on his team. It would have been bad for team cohesion."

"Oh whatever!" Sakura scoffed, finding the idea insane, "He still would have been better than you or what's-his-face."

"What's-his-face? You forgot his name?" Kiba rose an eyebrow, an expression on his face that Sakura couldn't quite identify. It was either disbelief or disgust, or perhaps a combination of the two.

"He never talks, how am I supposed to know his name? He just sits in the back and stares at the walls all day." Sakura replied, gesturing towards the seat in question.

"Naruto. Mizuki-sensei announced it when he was assigning the teams. You should pay more attention." Kiba said with a smirk. Sakura rolled her eyes.

"Pssh." She scoffed. For a few moments a silence fell on the room again as the two went back to waiting, both for their missing teammate and for their missing teacher. Naruto hadn't bothered to show up for graduation, and it seemed like their new sensei was the type that was notoriously late. All the other teams had left an hour ago.

"You're right, though." Kiba suddenly said, drawing Sakura's attention.

"...Huh?" She muttered in confusion.

"I'd rather have Sasuke than that guy, too. Naruto always smells burnt. I can't stand that." Kiba admitted. Sakura sat up straighter at that, looking at Kiba curiously.

"What do you mean by 'burnt'?" She asked.

"Burnt wood, burnt hair, burnt flesh. You know, burnt. Like fire." Kiba said simply. Sakura shrugged, turning away again.

"I never noticed." She said offhandedly.

"You never notice a lot of things. That's why you should pay more attention." Kiba replied quickly. Sakura growled a bit under her voice at the comeback, turning her attention back towards Kiba.

"You're not one to talk about smelling bad, Kiba." Sakura shot at him, causing Kiba to turn with an angry look on his face.

"I'm not one to talk?! What about you!" He shouted. Sakura immediately turned towards him in horror, as if he had just slapped her.

"What?! How dare you! I do _not_ smell bad!" She practically screamed, "I shower and take good care of myself every day to smell my best and-"

"That's what I'm talking about! You're covered with enough chemicals and fragrances to kill a small animal! You really think that shit smells appealing? Why do you think I'm sitting way the hell over here?" Kiba shot back, pointing to the fact that he was sitting on the opposite side of the bench from Sakura. He actually scooted a little further away when he saw how red faced she was getting.

"What do you know about smelling nice?! You smell like dogs all the time! Do you even bathe, or do you just roll around in the dirt with your puppy all day?" Sakura was furious at this point, resisting the urge to cross the bench and yell at Kiba to his face.

"It's better than smelling like hair dye." Kiba replied snidely. Sakura physically recoiled at that, her anger deflated in favor of embarrassment and denial.

"W...What? I do _not_ dye my hair!" She insisted.

"Yeah you do." Kiba shot back without hesitation.

"I do not!" She said again, a bit of a whine entering her tone that time.

"Right. It's a coincidence that your hair is pink and you come in smelling like hair dye every couple of weeks. I bet you touched it up this morning." Kiba shot back, his smirk growing bigger as Sakura flinched at his assumption. Yeah, he was totally right.

"This is my natural hair color!" Sakura insisted, looking at Kiba as he gave her a completely blank expression, "It is!"

"Whatever. Forget I said anything." He said, brushing her off. There was another brief moment of silence as Kiba looked away from Sakura and towards the door, wondering when the hell the missing two members of their group would show up.

"My hair is weird, okay?!" Sakura suddenly blurted out, causing Kiba to look at her over his shoulder. He glanced at Akamaru, who was sitting on the table. He seemed to look back at him in a way that said 'what are you looking at me for? I can't make her less crazy.'

"It's...uneven. If I didn't dye it it'd look stupid, alright? But this is my natural hair color! You can ask my mom if you want, she's got pink hair too!" Sakura said defensively. Kiba just sighed and put his head in his hand. He was about to tell her he didn't give a shit about her hair when the door suddenly slammed open, drawing their attention.

"Hm?" Naruto looked up, seeing two people and a dog sitting at the table furthest from the door. The room was otherwise empty, so he could only assume they were his team.

"Are you a leaf?" He asked of both of them, despite not phrasing it right. The girl with the hilarious hair and the boy with the fangs on his face both looked to each other in confusion, before fang-face just turned to him and pointed at his headband. Oh, he was wearing a headband. That meant he had to be a leaf.

"Okay." He replied, walking towards them. Kiba scooted down the bench towards Sakura as Naruto moved to sit down. Sakura briefly noted that Kiba was sitting a lot closer to her than he was to Naruto now, but didn't really blame him. This Naruto guy was kinda weird.

"I've seen you before." Naruto said, leaning towards Kiba with squinted eyes as if examining him closely. Kiba leaned back in response, unsure what to make of this.

"Uh, yeah...we have class together everyday." He replied. Naruto pulled back, but was still staring at him inquisitively, he then turned slightly, giving Sakura the same look.

"And you. I think I've found you." He said, suddenly pulling a small pouch off of his belt and putting it on the table.

"Found- wha?" Sakura was confused. It only got worse when Naruto opened his pouch to reveal it was full of leaves. If that weren't strange enough, Naruto was now digging through the leaves, treating each very delicately as he carefully examined them, occasionally holding them up and sending the two of them glances as if he were comparing the leaves to their faces. Correction: Very weird.

"Aha," Naruto suddenly exclaimed, pulling out a pair of leaves and holding them up triumphantly, "I knew it."

He put one down in front of him and held the other up to the light, rotating it slowly as he stared at it.

"This is you," He suddenly said, holding the leaf up and pointing it at Sakura. It was a strange leaf with two points, rather than the usual one.

"Two points. It's like two leaves in one. But it's not. It's still one leaf, just strange. But the two parts are so different. When I first found it, I thought it was like any other leaf. One half standing out straight from the branch proudly, but the other half just sat back in the shadow of the first, like it was watching. Waiting. I didn't even notice it, not until I looked closer. Two halves of the same whole, but still so different." Naruto spoke, half to Sakura and half to himself, still holding up the leaf the entire time. He seemed to be done, however, and slowly lowered the leaf to the table, as if afraid to harm it. He then picked up the other, and pointed it at Kiba.

"And this is you. Two leaves that share the same stem, not the same as hers was, but still connected." He began, looking both at Kiba and Akamaru, "looks like you, doesn't it?"

Kiba didn't respond, so Naruto just continued.

"People may think they're different, but I can see they're the same. They were identical once, the same bud. Though they grew apart, they grew together. They aren't reflections of each other, but compliments. You can tell, if you look close enough. Can't you tell? They're the same."

He held it out to Kiba, clearly expecting him to check it and verify his theory. He held it there motionlessly, staring intently at Kiba the entire time. Finally, Kiba nodded his head as a sign of acknowledgment, at which point Naruto collected both leaves and carefully put them back in his pouch. As he did so, Kiba and Sakura simply stared, dumbfounded expressions on their faces.

"You're both similar in a way," He suddenly continued, "complex leaves. Not typical. I don't know if that's a good thing or a bad thing, but that's what it is. You're strange. Get used to it."

"Ah, you're all here. Good." Sakura and Kiba turned to the source of the new voice like it were their savior, happy for something to change the unusual atmosphere that had filled the room.

"Meet me at training ground 7 in 5 minutes." He said simply, and then was gone. This time they watched in horror, like shipwrecked sailors watching a boat sail right past them. They looked to Naruto, who simply looked back and smiled. It wasn't a good smile. It only made them feel all the more disturbed.

"So, how about we get going then eh?" Kiba suddenly said, standing rigidly and jumping over the desk in favor of having to walk past Naruto, heading to the door at a brisk walk with Akamaru close at his heels.

"W...Wait for me!" Sakura squeaked out, rounding the desk in a wide arc to stay as far from Naruto as possible during her entire trip out the door.

Naruto simply sat where he was a few moments longer, smiling to himself. After a moment, he stood sedately, walking towards the door without much of a care.

-------------

Kakashi stood silently in the middle of training ground 7, a book in hand as he waited for his students to arrive. To be honest, he had expected them to be late. Training ground 7 was at least 9 minutes from the academy. You'd have to run the entire way to make it in time.

Surprisingly, Kiba was there within 2. Even Sakura, who he had written off as being nonathletic, pulled it off in 4 minutes. By the time Naruto arrived, the two of them had basically caught their breath, so Kakashi finally put his book away.

"Good, you're all here." Kakashi said, passing his one visible eye over each of them.

Kiba was as he expected of an Inuzuka, rough, but strong. His speed and stamina were clearly top notch if the run was any indication, and he knew the Inuzuka were Taijutsu specialists who dabbled in a narrow range of melee type ninjutsu. If he lived up to the reputation of his clan, he'd be an excellent student with plenty of talent. He could see why Sarutobi chose him for this team.

Sakura looked unassuming at a casual glance. She had obviously pushed herself to her limit in that run for some reason, so her physical abilities probably needed work. However, what he saw of her grades and what he heard from her teachers said great things for her intelligence and skill with chakra. He'd need to test her abilities himself, of course, and he'd probably have to push her much harder than Kiba. He could only hope she'd be able to prove herself skilled enough to stand a chance with the duty that was being asked of her.

And of course, there was Naruto, the entire purpose of this team. As Kakashi turned his eye to him, he could see the recognition slowly dawn on the boy's face. He grinned suddenly, looking at Kakashi with an all too familiar glint in his eyes.

"You're the one-eyed cat, the one that hides in a wolf's face. You're shorter than I remember. Did you shrink, or did I grow?" Naruto suddenly said, cocking his head slightly to the side as if pondering his own question. Kakashi ignored it, instead concentrating on the two other children present.

"I'd like to congratulate you on graduating, but it might not be appropriate. There's still one last test before you become Genin." Kakashi stated, watching the reactions of each carefully.

"Eh? Then what was the point of graduation?" Kiba asked, scratching his head. Confusion, but no sign of worry or apprehension. He was confident he'd pass whatever test it was. Good.

"So...we still might not pass? Will we be sent back to the academy?" Sakura questioned. Apprehension, worry, nervousness, doubt. She had a little bit of everything. Seems he would need to push her hard.

"Is it game time again? That was fun. You cut the sky last time. Have you learned a new trick?" Naruto said calmly. As he expected, he couldn't read the boy at all.

"The graduation exam ensured that you knew the techniques necessary to succeed as a ninja. This test will ensure you know how to apply them. I've hidden three bells in the woods of this training ground, and set traps throughout. It'll be your job to locate the bell without setting off the traps. If you can return here with a bell within an hour, you pass. Simple enough?" Kakashi explained. Sakura and Kiba nodded, while Naruto simply blinked.

"You'll each be given a one minute head start so that you don't interfere with one another. Naruto, you'll be first. After that, Sakura will go, and then Kiba. Do you understand?" Again, Sakura and Kiba nodded.

"I find your bell, I become a ninja?" Naruto asked, cocking his head again. Kakashi nodded in response.

"Weird game. I liked your other one better." And with that Naruto dashed towards the forest on all fours. It may have been a strange game, but he wouldn't let anything stand in the way of him becoming a ninja.

Kakashi stood and waited, watching Naruto disappear into the forest. After a minute, Sakura started to head off herself, only to find a small bell tossed into her hands by Kakashi.

"Congratulations, you pass." Kakashi said, tossing an identical bell to Kiba. The two of them stopped, looking at each other in obvious confusion before looking to Kakashi.

"What's...going on?" Kiba asked, dumbfounded.

"You made up this test just to get Naruto to go on a wild goose chase?" Sakura inquired. Kakashi raised an eyebrow. She's quick. There's hope for her yet.

"The two of you have been selected from your peers for a top secret, continuous A-rank mission. What I am about to tell you is an absolute village secret, never to be spoken of again in the company of anyone, even if you think they already know. Do not doubt me when I say that if either of you speak a word of this to anyone, you will be assassinated. Understood?" Kakashi spoke with a seriousness neither genin was accustomed to, the kind of tone a general would use when commanding his troops. Sakura and Kiba both nodded quickly, suddenly realizing that something big was going on.

"Roughly 12 years ago, a monster known as the Kyuubi no Kitsune appeared and assaulted our village, causing the deaths of countless civilians and ninja alike. According to the official story, The Yondaime Hokage gave his life to deliver the beast a killing blow. Unfortunately, that's not how it actually happened." Kakashi began, briefing the two in front of him on Naruto's condition. He had a feeling it would take awhile. He could only hope the ridiculous traps he had set up in advance would be enough to keep Naruto busy long enough for him to finish.

---------------

Naruto grinned to himself as another trap launched a hail of kunai at him. He was forced to dodge directly into the path of a swinging log that connected against his head with a heavy crunch, tossing him head over foot directly into a trip wire. His grin only widened as this in turn opened a pit hole that momentum and gravity insisted he fall into. He was flat out cackling when he saw that the entire floor of the pit was covered in sharpened wooden pikes, clearly positioned to impale whoever fell in.

A blaze comparable to hellfire erupted from the pit as Naruto turned the spikes to ashes. However, this was quickly followed by a cacophony of explosions, as Naruto's flame activated the numerous explosive notes that covered the walls of the pit, concealed in a thin layer of moss and vines his fire burned away.

As the smoke cleared, Naruto climbed out of the noticeably larger hole, his body entirely engulfed in flame as his mad grin now stretched from ear to ear.

"I _**like **_ this game!" He announced with a laugh, returning to his search.

----------------

"Any questions?" It had taken Kakashi nearly half an hour to completely fill the two in. He could have just given them the gist of it and been done within 5, but brevity had been the cause of this entire situation to begin with. If Sarutobi had taken the time to properly brief Iruka, none of this would have happened. Thus, he spared no detail in his description.

Of course, he left out some info they didn't really need to know, such as Naruto's involvement in the Uchiha Incident. He didn't see the need to inform the two of them in that, at least not yet.

"Why us?" Kiba asked, trying to come to terms with what he had been told. They sealed a monster like the Kyuubi into a newborn? That's insanity. No wonder Naruto was always a few bricks short of a load. He almost felt sorry for the guy.

"The best way to keep Naruto out of trouble is to give him what he wants, and that's to become a ninja. Thus, we had no choice but to put him on a genin team and to use genin for this mission. Out of your graduating class, four students were automatically disqualified for their histories with Naruto. Of the four remaining, you two were seen as the best suited for the job." Kakashi explained, looking over his shoulder briefly to see whether or not Naruto was on his way back yet.

"But, how? You told us what he can do. I don't see how Kiba or I are suited to handle that at all." Sakura wasn't sure what to make of all this. It just wasn't the kind of thing she had ever been prepared for. Naruto was a pyromaniac with an unstable mind, and they were chosen to keep him from getting out of control. It was crazy.

"It has less to do with your abilities being well suited, and more to do with the abilities of your peers being even less so. Out of the four choices we had, the other two would likely do more harm to themselves than Naruto if they attempted to subdue him. You two were chosen out of a process of elimination." Kakashi almost sighed when he saw the looks that crossed their faces when he said that, but knew it wouldn't be appropriate.

Before either of them could say anything, Naruto returned. His clothes were torn, his body was smoking, and it looked like he had recently passed through a warzone. Despite all this, he was smiling widely, a banged up bell held in one hand.

"Fun game," Naruto said, chuckling slightly to himself, "Can we play again?"

-----------

A week had passed. A week of D rank missions, and of watching Naruto. To be honest, Kiba didn't know if he was up to this. It had been fine at first. Kinda like babysitting. Only the baby in this case was a pyrotechnic 12-year-old with the most powerful engine of destruction known to man picking at his brain.

He had been into it, at first. Paint the fence, pull the weeds, deliver the mail. Simple stuff. Stuff all ninjas started out doing. Kiba had gotten tired of it, himself, but he sucked it up. Didn't seem Naruto was willing to do that.

"Can't believe he set fire to that cat...Totally unnecessary." Kiba muttered to himself, shaking his head at the thought. The Fire Daimyo's wife was furious, understandably, when she learned her beloved cat had been found dead of mysterious causes. But hey, it happens. Cat gets out into the wild, sometimes it dies. Of course, they hadn't told her it was flash fried into a pile of ash by a pillar of demonic fire, but some details were better off not being brought up.

Akamaru barked a few times at Kiba from his position on top of his head, causing him to sigh.

"Yeah, he doesn't like cats much. Probably had something to do with it, too." He replied. Naruto was annoyed by the fact they were stuck doing shit missions, which he made perfectly clear when he vaporized their mission yesterday. He also hadn't bothered to show up today, meaning it was now up to Kiba to go to his house and tell him they were getting a C rank mission this time.

"Bastard better be appreciative. Kakashi-sensei's probably gonna have to put the Hokage in a head lock to get him to agree to that." He said, Akamaru barking in agreement. Kiba looked up as he realized he had come to the right building, briefly wondering what kind of apartment a psycho like Naruto would have as he climbed the stairs and knocked on the door.

The door flew open and there stood Naruto, naked as the day he was born. Kiba didn't notice this. The first thing he saw was the room behind the boy, which was covered from floor to ceiling with hellish markings. It could only be described as looking into the mind of a psychopath, as it looked like Naruto had turned his entire apartment into some kind of sick canvas. He couldn't even begin to count the number of violent deaths and murders that were burned into the walls in disturbing detail, like a mural taken from the halls of hell. It was...horrifying. The subject matter was bad enough. The fact he did it so well only made it all the more disturbing. Kiba couldn't help but notice just how well done the depictions were, and that thought alone almost made him want to vomit.

And this was just what he could see from the doorway. His mind blanked when he attempted to imagine what could lay in wait further in, unwilling to summon up the images.

"Fang-Face." Naruto said, a hint of irritation in his voice as Kiba finally snapped out of it. It seemed he had been standing there in a stupor while Naruto had been talking.

"We've got a mission," Kiba blurted out, looking eyes with Naruto and noting his expression didn't improve. "Kakashi-sensei said it was a C-rank this time."

"Oh, you should have said so." Naruto replied, suddenly brightening considerably. He walked away from the door, leaving it wide open, presumably to change. Kiba took one look into the room again before pulling the door shut.

"What the fuck?!" He exclaimed. Akamaru barked in agreement.

-----------

The Hokage sighed as he looked at Team 7, then looking at the mission request again. It was the only C class he had right now that was even remotely appropriate to give to a team of green genin, and that was debatable, especially with this particular team.

'It's Naruto. Can I really trust him on an escort mission?' Sarutobi thought to himself, glancing up from the document again to see Naruto standing there, tapping his foot. He sighed, giving in. Maybe a real mission would calm him down.

"Hey, would you come in here?" The Hokage called out towards a door across the room. Naruto turned, looking towards the newcomer. The man in the doorway took a quick swig from the bottle in his hand, glancing at the ninja team he had apparently been assigned to. Three kids and their teacher? He was unimpressed.

"What's this? They're all a bunch of brats." The man said, almost in disgust. Kiba crossed his arms in annoyance, but said nothing, while Sakura ignored the jab. Naruto, however, chuckled slightly, locking eyes with the old man.

"Are you a leaf?" He asked, a tone in his voice that had just enough violence hidden in it to suggest that the Correct answer was the only one this man would want to give.

"Naruto," Sarutobi wasn't about to let this continue. He had to snip it in the bud, "This is Tazuna, a bridge builder from Wave country and the purpose of this mission. You will be escorting him home, and will ensure the bridge between Fire and Wave is finished without interruption. Until then, Tazuna is under your protection, and should be considered a valuable asset to Konoha."

Naruto turned towards the Hokage with a look of defiance, which quickly deflated when he saw the look on the old man's face. Sarutobi leaned forward, looking directly into Naruto's eyes.

"Should anything happen to Tazuna before the bridge is completed, you will fail this mission. Strong Ninja do not fail missions." He stated, causing Naruto to flinch slightly.

"Alright, then. Shall we be going?" Kakashi spoke up to break the tension.

-------------

"A real C-Rank mission, huh?" Kiba muttered to himself, glancing up at Akamaru on his head as the great doors of Konoha closed behind him. This was his first time really leaving the village, and from the looks on the other's faces, it was the same for them, too.

Sakura glanced around, somewhat in wonderment. It was almost weird being able to look into the distance and not see the towering walls. They were behind her now. All that laid in front of her was....well....the world. _"This is so exciting!"_

Naruto grinned, looking around. He was free. He was out. He could go where he wanted, do what he wanted. Nothing to stop him. No promises, no Hokage. Just a world of non-leaves. He giggled at the thought of it.

"Alright, you heard what the Hokage said. Our mission is to protect Tazuna until the bridge is finished. The faster we get moving, the sooner we'll get to Wave so he can finish his work." Kakashi announced, earning the attention of his team as they all nodded to him and headed out.

"Hey now, I'm just an old man. No need to rush on my account." Tazuna replied nervously. He didn't think he'd be able to keep up pace with ninjas in a rush.

"That's alright, we'll be moving at your pace." Kakashi assured him. Soon the journey was underway, and already the wall behind them was falling out of view. Kiba turned around and started walking backwards to watch it go, before turning again and catching up with Kakashi.

"How far is Wave, anyway?" Sakura asked. She wasn't used to walking without talking at the same time. It seemed weird to her to travel in silence.

"Not too far. We should be there in a day or so." Tazuna replied, turning towards Sakura.

"So what is your work like, Tazuna-san? Building bridges must be hard." She continued, happy for conversation as Tazuna laughed and got into the details of his day to day duties.

Naruto glanced curiously at a nearby puddle as they walked by. It hadn't rained in weeks. He knew. He was always on the look out for rain. Why drop a pile of water here?

Kiba's nose flared as Akamaru barked at him a few times.

"Yeah, I smell it too. Kakashi-sensei-" Kiba turned towards his teacher, just to see the man looking at him impassively.

"I know." He replied, before Kiba could finish. The boy nodded, deciding his teacher must have a plan in mind already.

---

Gouzu and Meizu, Demon Brothers of the Hidden Mist, laid in wait within their jutsu as the Konoha ninja wandered by. This was the way a true ninja fought, striking from secret when the target least expected it. It was a style the brothers were experts in.

Once the group was sufficiently ahead, they dropped their jutsu, rising as one from the puddle of water. As they surfaced, they prepared to strike, locking the bladed chain that connected them and readying it for an assault. The Jounin would be first. He was too much of a threat. Only after he was dead could they attack the real target.

Before they even moved, the short blonde genin spun around suddenly, staring at them with a strange look in his eyes as he spoke.

"Are you a leaf?" He asked, a smirk on his face.

They'd been spotted. A change in tactics was necessary. Both brothers moved as one, reaching the same conclusion at the same time and acting upon it in unison. They'd need to kill the blonde first. If they were lucky, the Jounin would still be flatfooted enough to hit next.

In an instant they charged, the chain between them dancing in the air as they encircled the boy and yanked, the blades on the chain clinking together as they were tightened. His allies shouted his name in surprise, but it was too late. A distinct sense of slack went through the chain, earning a smirk from both of them under their breath masks. The boy was a goner.

Except, that is, until they tried to move to their next target. They were no longer bound together. They had too much slack. A quick look revealed why, as the each of them had less than 3 feet of chain which ended in a glowing red, melted piece of slag.

"Nope, not leaves." The blonde cackled. Gouzu and Meizu locked eyes on the boy in horror. He was on fire! He burnt through their chain? What kind of Jutsu was that?!

"I've been waiting for this." He muttered, his eyes locked on Meizu with a look that promised torment.

----

Naruto turned, grinning victoriously as he saw the Puddle People come out of the water. He knew there was something weird about it! His grin turned into a smirk as he realized what this meant. Puddle People weren't leaves, were they?

"Are you a leaf?" He asked for verification. The puddle people didn't seem to be very talkative, instead rushing at him at full speed. Huh, it looked like they were chained together. In a flurry of motion, the chain was soaring through the air, circling him numerous times before the two ninja landed and pulled out all the slack.

"Naruto!" Kiba shouted out, already in motion towards the nearest ninja. However, he stopped dead in his tracks as Naruto basically exploded, his body bathed in intense flames, hot enough to make the chain start to glow well before it even touched him as it was torn apart, the tension the ninjas had placed on it breaking the weakened metal.

"Nope, not leaves." Naruto just laughed, his body burning unhindered. However, it seemed like the fire was both burning him and healing him, causing his body to recover just as fast as it was consumed. The glimpses of exposed muscle, veins and bones were brief, but Kiba undeniably saw them. It was enough to cause him to hesitate. He didn't even move as Naruto retaliated.

"I've been waiting for this." Naruto said aloud, though mostly to himself. How long had it been since he made that promise? 6 years? 6 years of holding back, of keeping himself in check so that he wouldn't burn any leaves. And now, finally, after all that waiting, he was faced with a pair of Non-leaves, and ones that wanted to kill him, too. No one would mourn these fools. He could finally cut loose a little.

"Youkou Ninpou," Naruto began, throwing his hands together in a hand seal the demon brothers didn't recognize. Kakashi's eyes widened as he saw the seal.

"Naruto, don't!" Kakashi shouted, abandoning his motion to intercept the two. He knew Naruto well enough that he was going to use this technique whether Kakashi was in the blast or not. Instead, he moved with all the speed his rank as Jounin allowed, gathering Kiba, Sakura and Tazuna into one spot before flashing through several handseals of his own.

"Ichibiton: Rin!" Naruto called out, the flames around him intensifying considerably as a massive, fiery tail seemed to uncoil from the flames, rising out from his back and hanging in the air lazily. The Demon Brothers were off like a shot, flanking around Naruto in wide arcs to take him from either side. Naruto's grin only widened.

"What's going on, Kakashi-Sensei?" Kiba shouted, but he was ignored as Kakashi completed his jutsu.

"Moero!" Naruto cried out, the fire around him intensifying as he threw both his hands out, each one aimed at a Demon Brother as they came at him. Gouzu's eyes widened as he saw what was coming, immediately performing the seals for a Kawarimi while Meizu continued without pause, intent on stopping this jutsu before it started.

A wave of fire exploded from Naruto's hands as the boy laughed. The grass in the path simply vanished as the bare dirt was baked. Meizu never knew what hit him. Before he even reached the brat, it was like he was suddenly plunged into a volcano. His hair was gone in an instant, his cloak and armor following shortly afterward as his skin melted and his body sizzled. He tore the gauntlet off his arm and the breath mask from his face as they both became red hot, and quickly collapsed to the ground as the muscles in his leg burnt to the point he could no longer support his own weight. And through it all, he screamed.

"Doton: Keshitomeru no jutsu!" Kakashi called out, a wave of earth and stone exploding from the ground in a semi circle around him and the others, halting the advance of the flaming blast before it could consume them as well.

Naruto's smile turned to a frown as he noticed the second ninja got away. Shame. That meant he had to chase him.

"Sorry, can't play. The game's on the move." Naruto said, turning towards the downed ninja writhing on the floor in pain.

"Bye bye. Tokero!" A pillar of fire exploded from the earth beneath the ninja, silencing his screams as his body was obliterated, reduced to ash in a matter of moments. Naruto immediately turned towards the nearby forest as the flames surrounding his body died, locking eyes on the retreating ninja.

"Don't run! We're not done yet!" He shouted, quickly bounding off into the forest in pursuit.

"Naruto! Stop!" Kakashi shouted as his barrier crumbled, getting to his feet just to see his student disappearing into the forest.

"What the hell was that?! What're you teaching kids these days?!" Tazuna shouted, looking around in horror at the aftermath of Naruto's blast. Sakura and Kiba shared a look for a moment with grim looks on their faces, saying nothing and instead turning to Kakashi.

Kakashi was stuck between a rock and a hard place. The mission was in jeopardy. On the one hand, he couldn't let Naruto run off on his own. It was a non-option to lose track of the boy. However, he couldn't just abandon the mission and chase after him. There could be reinforcements laying in wait, and leaving Tazuna with Sakura and Kiba could mean the death of all three, and it would be even worse if he took the two genin with him. Tazuna wouldn't stand a chance to make it back.

However, letting Naruto run off was a _non-option._ This was a worst-case scenario, so risks had to be taken.

"Kiba, Sakura. Pursue Naruto. I'll bring Tazuna back to Konoha before following." Kakashi ordered. Neither hesitated as they went into action, heading off towards the forest after the boy.

"What? What about me? I have a bridge to finish!" Tazuna complained, but immediately shut up as Kakashi's one good eye locked on the man.

"You lied to us. There wasn't supposed to be any ninja combat on a C-rank mission. This is B rank, if not higher. You've put my students in danger because you wanted to skimp on price." Kakashi replied, anger clear in his voice. Tazuna deflated slightly.

"Yeah, you're right. Wave country may be so poor that not even our feudal lord has any money, but that's no excuse for trying to trick you. I should have sold what little possessions I had left to get together the funds I needed for a proper B rank mission." Tazuna muttered in a depressed tone.

"It's alright, you have no responsibility to protect me. Go after your student. I'll surely be killed, but that just means my cute little grandson will cry for a few days, and my daughter will probably live a sad life, hating Konohagakure forever, but I suppose I deserve it." Kakashi sighed, putting his head in his hand as Tazuna continued his guilt trip. He didn't have time for this.

"If you're lucky, another team will volunteer out of the kindness of their hearts. Two Genin teams should be enough for a B rank mission." Kakashi stated, glad that the bridge builder finally shut up as he lead the man back towards Konoha.

He only hoped Sakura and Kiba were able to catch up to Naruto okay, and briefly wondered what kind of crazy team would agree to a mission without being paid.

---------

Sasuke sighed as his sensei continued to debate with the Hokage over their mission. It was kinda annoying, really. She had gotten their hopes up by saying they were ready for their first C-rank mission, but apparently the Hokage didn't have any available, something he somehow doubted, considering he had an entire scroll labeled 'C' on his desk. They were being underestimated, plain and simple.

"You look disappointed." Hinata spoke softly as always, drawing Sasuke's attention away from his sensei to the girl standing nearby.

"How can you tell?" He asked, turning away again. He pulled on his face mask a few times, just to be certain it was in place, and found that it was.

"Body language. You have a lot of tells." She replied with a shrug, her attention now turned on their teacher as well.

"..." Sasuke frowned, crossing his arms and leaning against the wall. Clearly, he'd have to work on that.

Throughout the exchange, Shino just stood to one side motionlessly, like he always tended to do. If he was paying attention to anything at all, Sasuke couldn't tell what it was.

"I'm sorry, Kurenai, but your team only just formed, and there are many other ninjas with seniority here. The only C rank mission I had, Kakashi already claimed." Sarutobi pointed out, getting a little tired of all this. It had been a slow week for C class missions, and he already had several special teams in mind to handle the few he did have. He couldn't just take a mission from another team to give to Kurenai.

"But.." Kurenai began, but was cut off as the door slammed open and Kakashi came in with a strange old man in tow.

"Kakashi? What are you doing back here? Where is your team?" Sarutobi immediately noticed the absence of Naruto and the others, wondering what could possibly bring Kakashi back so soon without them.

"There's no time to explain. We were attacked by a team of Ninja from the hidden mist and my team has been separated. I had no choice but to bring Tazuna back before going after them." Kakashi stated simply, heading back for the door.

"I need to find my students. You're on your own now, Tazuna." Kakashi didn't even spare the man a glance before he was gone. The Hokage, however, gave the man a good, long, hard look, a grim look on his face.

"Ninja?" It was more of an accusation than a question.

"Huh? Uh..." Tazuna suddenly felt on the spot, sweating nervously in the Hokage's glare. He had a feeling the guilt trip plan wasn't going to work on a guy of this caliber. So, Plan B it is. "They weren't after me. They only attacked the blonde kid." Nice thinking, Tazuna! And it was technically true, too.

Sarutobi's eyes widened, not liking the sound of that at all. Mist assassins attacking Naruto intentionally? Could the fact he was a Jinchuuriki have gotten out?

"So, does this mean Kakashi's C-rank is up for grabs?" Sasuke suddenly asked, causing Tazuna to turn towards this new team and grin. Weird, long haired girl with no eyes, tall kid in a big coat and sunglasses, and a respectable looking boy actually dressed as a ninja, complete with a short sword on his back. Better than nothing.

---------

The non-leaf continued to scream, writhing on the floor as Naruto continued to draw his flames across his body, burning his art into the man's bones. It had been a fun chase. This guy was even a good runner, but it seemed he couldn't run very well when his legs were on fire. Too bad.

"Stop! Please!" the puddle man managed between his screams.

Naruto just laughed, "Why?" He asked, unable to think of a reason why he should.

"Naruto!" Kiba's voice rang out, causing Naruto to turn his head away from his captive. Gouzu saw this and immediately raised his arm, his gauntlet long since fused to his hand. Naruto turned back around just in time to see the ninja take his own life. Damn, that was the 12th time he tried that. Looks like he succeeded this time, too.

"You're no fun." Naruto muttered, opening his hand all the way as the flames intensified into a towering pillar, reducing the ninja to ashes in moments. Kiba and Sakura arrived on the scene just in time to find Naruto standing in front of a smoking crater, no sign remaining of the ninja other than the melted remains of his weapons and tools.

"You want something?" Naruto asked lazily, turning towards the two inquisitively.

"Come on, we have to go back. Kakashi-sensei is waiting for us." Sakura pleaded. Naruto glanced at her impassively, considering it.

"Go back? We're halfway there. No point stopping now." He said simply before turning and continuing on his way.

"We can't leave without Tazuna!" Kiba shouted, though Naruto kept walking anyway. "We'll fail the mission without him, Naruto. Strong Ninja don't fail missions, remember?"

Naruto stopped, standing still for a moment, causing both Kiba and Sakura to pause as well, on edge. Finally he turned, a frown on his face.

"So, we have to go back, right?" Kiba muttered, suddenly feeling a lot less sure of himself as Naruto stalked towards them.

"Y..yeah, Naruto. We just need to head back to meet up with Tazuna-san and Kakashi-sensei. No problem." Sakura added nervously. Suddenly Naruto sped up, landing on all fours and dashing in-between the two, continuing off like a rocket in the direction they came from.

"Strong ninja don't fail missions! We find the bridge builder!" Naruto shouted, disappearing into the distance. Kiba and Sakura glanced at one another before running off after him. At least they were going in the right direction now.

------------------

Zabuza sat on the tree and waited, his trusted sword slung over one shoulder as he watched the path. His employer had been somewhat annoyed when the demon brothers failed to kill the bridge builder, so now it was up to him to finish the job.

"Zabuza-sama, are you sure you don't want me to help?" he turned at the effeminate voice, locking eyes with his partner for a moment before turning back towards the road. The boy was strong, and had his uses, but he was always one for a back-up plan. No point playing all your aces when one would do the trick.

"You know the plan, Haku. You don't get involved unless things get out of hand." Zabuza explained, spotting a group coming up the road. Hm, seemed like that Copy-Ninja had passed on the mission to another team after all. Good. That meant he probably wouldn't run into-

"Looks like you won't have to worry about that Genin with the weird fire Jutsu." Haku chipped in, interrupting his thoughts. Zabuza simply nodded, pulling his sword off his shoulder and standing up on the branch.

"Keep a lookout. I don't want Kakashi and his bunch to sneak up on me." He said simply, preparing his jutsu.

------------

Kurenai looked around as a sudden mist seemed to settle into the area. This...was ninjutsu. She stopped instantly, raising her hand to signal her team to stop as well.

"Surround the bridge builder. Protect him from all angles." She commanded, never taking her eyes off her surroundings as the three genin did just that. It seemed Tazuna was lying before when he said the ninja weren't after him, but it was too late to complain about that.

"Eight choices." a voice announced, reverberating off the surroundings until it seemed to come from everywhere. That was a trick she was more familiar with, auditory genjutsu....

"Liver, Lungs, Spine, Clavicle, Jugular, Brain, Kidneys, Heart." The voice announced. Just a little longer and she'd be able to pinpoint it. It seemed whoever this was, he wasn't very good at genjutsu.

"Which one should I strike?" There it was. Kurenai spun, turning towards her team while drawing a blade from her side.

"DUCK!" She shouted, her Genin immediately complying, dragging Tazuna to the ground as her target appeared in between them, ready to strike. He seemed surprised to see them dodging, however, and did nothing to stop the knife that struck him between the eyes. His head jerked back violently just before he collapsed into a pile of water.

'Clone!' Kurenai thought, spinning around and ducking as a massive cleaver tore through the space her body previously occupied, throwing another knife straight up as she went down, taking this new target in the neck. He, too, collapsed into a pile of water, leaving her glancing around for a target.

Sasuke looked up just in time to see the same man from before standing over him, his massive sword prepared to cut through him to hit Tazuna if necessary. In a flash, he unsheathed his own sword, taking the blow full on and nearly collapsing to his knees by the force of it.

"Tch, you got guts, kid. But you're nothing but a corpse to me." Zabuza growled, pushing the boy to his knees. He noticed the red eyes this kid was sporting and raised an eyebrow. Sharingan, eh? He might actually have to take him serious. He also noted the Jounin coming his way out of the corner of his eye and decided to finish it, raising his weapon for the final blow.

"HAKKE!" Zabuza grunted, a palm slamming into his side with what felt like a sledgehammer backing it up. "ROKUJUUYONSHOU!"

The water clone was obliterated in a matter of moments by Hinata's flurry of blows, launching water across the field. Sasuke moved instantly, Sharingan eyes spinning as he saw the final clone coming in from behind, his hands already flashing through the seals.

"Suiton: Suigadan!" Sasuke called out, just as the new water clone came in with his sword. The same water that had made up Zabuza's other clones now provided the material for Sasuke's jutsu, causing three drills of water to explode from the nearby puddles and slam into the final clone, tearing it apart and reducing it to nothing but a puddle of water as well.

"Sasuke, how many?" Kurenai asked, turning towards the lake.

"Four. Got them all." He replied, putting his sword away in the same move, Sharingan eyes still rotating slowly.

"Tazuna is unharmed." Shino noted, helping the man to his feet.

"Easy for you to say!" Tazuna grumbled.

"Heh, not bad, for a bunch of rookies." Zabuza muttered, climbing out of the lake and standing on its surface. "But we're just getting started."

"No," Kurenai replied, "This ends now."

"Think you're hot stuff, huh?" Zabuza asked, locking eyes on the kunoichi. He blinked, and suddenly she was gone. "Wha?"

"Eight choices." Kurenai's voice came from everywhere, causing Zabuza to spin around in search of the woman. Was this some kind of joke?

"Sight, Sound, Smell, Taste, Sensation, Pain, Vestibular, Kinesthetic." Her voice continued, earning a growl from Zabuza as he continued his search.

"How many should I use?" her voice seemed to come from behind him, causing him to immediately turn and strike. However, there was nothing there. Literally nothing. He wasn't even on the lake anymore, instead finding himself in a pitch black field, covered in flowers that seemed to have lost their color.

"Let's start with pain." Zabuza looked up. His body was pinned to a tree, and the damn kunoichi was hovering over him with a dagger in hand. He suddenly remembered why he hated Genjutsu so damn much.

As she came in for the kill, Zabuza consciously stopped his chakra flow to his feet. He knew they were still on the lake, even if it didn't look like it. He was quickly enveloped in water as he plunged into the lake, the genjutsu broken by this sudden shock.

No way in _hell_ he was letting her do that again.

"Suiton..."

Sasuke watched in shock as the lake practically exploded, seeing Kurenai tossed from the surface by the waves and smash against a tree along the shoreline. Zabuza surfaced shortly thereafter, running through another group of handseals, this time looking like he was aiming for them.

"Suiton: Suiryuudan!" Zabuza cried out, however it was in perfect unison with another voice. A pair of dragons made of water rose from the lake, the first lashing out towards them and the second intercepting the first, both destroying one another and sending a torrent of water flying across the area.

"Kurenai! Are you okay?" Kakashi asked, rushing in after his attack and stopping in front of Kurenai's genin team. It was a good thing he arrived when he did. A second later and he wouldn't have been able to copy the jutsu.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little stunned." She admitted, getting to her feet and cradling her side. She had hit that tree pretty hard...It felt like some ribs were broken.

"You're...Kakashi?" Sasuke muttered, recognizing the man from earlier in the day. He had a Sharingan...why did he have a Sharingan?

"Where's your team?" Shino asked, still standing protectively in front of Tazuna. Before Kakashi could reply, a figure tore out of the far side of the forest, dashing across the water on all fours, simultaneously on fire.

"That'd be them now." Kakashi replied.

-------------

Naruto grinned as he reached the end of the forest, Kiba and Sakura well behind him. Those two were so slow it was almost sad. No fun at all letting them chase him. He had to slow down all the time. He turned his attention back to what was in front of him, noting that he had reached some kind of lake. There also was some guy standing on the water. Another Puddle Person? Or maybe Lake Person was more appropriate.

He was still kinda annoyed that the last one killed himself before Naruto was finished. Looks like he could pick up where he left off. With a grin, Naruto burst into flame, dropping to all fours and running across the water completely on instinct.

Haku spotted the human fireball almost immediately and knew it was time to intervene. First Kakashi, now his genin? He knew Zabuza was strong, but he didn't think the man could take on two jounin and six genin at the same time, especially when one of those genin single handedly murdered the Demon Brothers.

'He's...not going to stop, is he?' Haku wondered, pulling out his senbon to hit Zabuza as planned, but hesitated. What the scouts reported suggested this guy wouldn't care if Zabuza was dead, he'd roast him anyway. That only left Haku with one option. He had to intervene personally.

Naruto grunted as he was blindsided, hurled into the lake by an unseen attacker. Haku landed calmly on the lake, tossing aside the burnt stick he had used to hit the boy. It seemed he was right to assume that attacking him while he was on fire wouldn't have been wise.

"Zabuza-sama, I think a retreat is in order." Haku said, turning to the Jounin in question. He grunted, glancing at the three genins in front of him, with Kakashi and Kurenai on hand, and the three Genin behind him, including the one with the fire fetish.

"Tch. Until next time, then." With a quick hand seal, the mist was returning, and in short order, Zabuza and Haku disappeared.

"Hmm..." Kakashi pulled his headband back down, covering his Sharingan as he turned to assess the situation. It seemed that Tazuna and Kurenai's team were unharmed, but the Jounin herself had taken a rather nasty hit.

"You sure you're all right?" He asked, turning towards the woman in question. She was cradling her ribs, and he was pretty sure he saw some discoloration in her clothes.

"Yes, I'm fine." He sighed at her denial. Shino glanced at Hinata, who nodded and moved behind the Jounin before concentrating.

"Byakugan..." she muttered, ensuring no one could see her eyes before she activated the technique. Time seemed to stand still as her vision amplified, and she was soon looking straight through her teacher, seeing everything there was to see in her.

"Sensei, you've broken a rib on your left side, and you're bleeding." Hinata confirmed, releasing the technique. Kurenai sighed, not wanting to admit she'd been injured so easily.

"That's alright, you guys saved my life. You can stay at my house! I can get the doctor to fix you right up, no problem!" Tazuna proclaimed, laughing a bit at it.

"Alright then, we'll head there. Are you okay to walk, Kurenai?" Kakashi asked, earning an annoyed glare from the woman.

"I said I'm fine." She muttered in irritation.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Kiba shouted out as he and Sakura rounded the lake, meeting up with their teacher and the other team as quick as they could.

"Ah, there you two are. We'll be working with Kurenai's team from here on out, so stay close." Kakashi ordered, before turning towards Tazuna to discuss where they were headed next.

"Hey guys, long time no see." Kiba muttered with a chuckle, scratching the back of his head. The three genin looked at him for a moment with expressions he couldn't read, mostly because two of them covered their faces.

Sasuke looked between the two, trying to remember their names. He never really paid attention to the other students from the academy. Hmm...The pink haired one was looking at him strangely. Great, that was the last thing he needed.

"Inazuka, Haruno. I take it the one using the fire jutsu was your teammate?" Shino spoke up first, looking between the two before turning his gaze towards the lake.

"I don't recall any of our classmates knowing fire techniques. Who else is on your team?" He asked, just as a figure popped out of the waters of the lake and dragged himself to shore.

Hinata turned, looking at the boy coming out of the lake as her breath suddenly seized in her lungs. Her eyes widened. No, it couldn't be him. Not him.

"Ah, Uzumaki. Of course." Shino muttered, turning away in disinterest as Naruto got to his feet and growled. For an instant, his body was cloaked in flames, his skin burning as the heat evaporated the water from his hair and clothes. He had no idea what had hit him, but he was determined to find it, and burn it to ash.

"Are we leaving now?" Naruto asked, looking over the group. The two teachers were talking with the bridge builder, which only left the three genin to ask. They seemed vaguely familiar. Especially the long haired girl. Her fear smelt especially familiar.

"Hinata? You okay?" Sasuke asked, noticing the way the girl seemed to have frozen up, glancing at her briefly. She seemed to be staring at the blonde kid like he was the devil himself. Why would she be afraid of him.

"It's...N...N...Nothing..." Hinata muttered, trying desperately to calm her nerves as Naruto approached with that horrible grin on his face.

"You're shaking," He said, tilting his head slightly, "Stop it."

Hinata tried her best not to scream.

------------

To be Continued

Author's Notes: Yes, I'm alive. I know, it's a fucking miracle, right? Hopefully the next update won't take nearly as long as this one did. And yes, I am changing my chapter pattern a bit. Next chapter will be Naruto again, followed by two chapters of Gaara. So look forward to that.

Next Time: Team 7 and 8 work together towards a common goal, bringing the bridge builder to Wave and stopping Gato's plan. However, with Kurenai out of commission and the Mist Ninja waiting in the wings, will they even have a chance to finish the bridge, or will wave burn to the ground in Naruto's crossfire? The thrilling conclusion of wave is in the next installment of But for the Grace of God: Fire and Ice.

Ryo-Wolf


	6. In Fire and Ice

Disclaimer: Naruto is the property of whoever it was that made it.

AN: 6 months? Bleh, that's pathetic. I hate the wave mission. It's slowed me down like crazy. If I ever write another Naruto fic, mark my words, I'm totally skipping wave.

What I listened to while writing this: KMFDM - Ultra. It might as well be Naruto's Anthem.

-----------

He didn't so much walk as stalk, his stride wide and heavy, moving through the dim dusk light with a purpose, though a poorly understood one. He moved as if he knew where his destination was, but that could not be further from the truth. He was simply moving. Not because he had somewhere to be, or even a place worth being. He was just moving for the sake of moving. Without motion he would be still, and to be still was to rest. Rest would lead to sleep, and in sleep, only the images waited.

That was why he moved, strode through the forests with a false sense of purpose as the sun lazily began its climb to signal the beginning of the new day. This was not his home; he could not decorate here. He could only move, and had been moving all night. He wasn't about to stop now. He had rested enough, and sleep was for the weak. Yes, that must be it. He was a strong ninja. Iruka would make him strong. Sleep was a weakness, and Iruka punished him for that weakness with the images, and all they brought. The pain, the fear, the flashes of tooth and nail and blood. He could not be weak, so he would not sleep.

_Why?_ Naruto slowed slightly, a look of confusion crossing his face as he looked around. He glared at the shadows the sun had brought with suspicion in his eyes, sure that they had defied him.

_Why do you struggle?_ He turned quickly, a frown on his face.

"To become strong!" he shouted at the trees, a few birds escaping their perches and taking to the sky. He stayed where he was for a moment in wait before slowly choosing another direction and starting off at random. Though he moved with the same purpose as before, his mind was no longer focused, now just as lost as his feet were. Struggle? What struggle? Struggle against sleep? Against stopping? Against death? He needed these things. If he did not struggle against sleep, how would he hold off the images? How could he show his strength if he could not even deny them? If he did not struggle to move, then he would stop, and then how would he stay awake?

And if he did not struggle against death, then what would be the point of life?

_Why are you alive?_ Naruto turned, a growl on his lips as the flames built up within him, begging for release. He glared into the shadows of the forest as the sun just began to climb above the horizon, daring them to speak up again.

He did not know how long he stood there, staring into the shadows in anger. The sun was well on its way towards the sky by the time he heard movement approaching, breaking him out of his trance.

"You." Zabuza muttered, looking down at the blond as the boy spun to face him, "One of Konoha's brats, playing at ninja?"

He glared at him, and the boy glared back, an odd glint in his keen gaze. Zabuza could feel the hint of killer intent bubbling beneath the surface. He smirked slightly at it, finding it almost refreshing.

"No," He began after a moment's pause, "You aren't like those green kids. You've got a killer's eyes. You know what it means to end a man."

"Ending? What's the fun in an ending?" Naruto replied with a grin, the killer intent in his eyes intensifying as a slight chuckle rose in his throat, "It's the beginning that's the best, when they first start to scream."

Naruto noticed the others for the first time as Haku stepped forward defensively. The blond's gaze carried over their shoulders to the lines of men behind them, seeing the unease that crossed their features from the killer intent Naruto was now giving off. A few ninja in the ranks, but mostly mercenaries and bandits, men who barely understood which end of a sword was sharp.

There wasn't a leaf among them, but they were so weak it'd hardly be worth the effort. Naruto forgot them as quickly as he noticed them, instead turning all his attention to the two in front, the masked men.

"Are you a leaf?" Naruto asked with a grin, his tone becoming obviously threatening. His eyes were still locked on Zabuza, sparing a glance toward the lopsided headband that declared him a member of the hidden mist. His grin grew wider, finding his answer.

"You're out of your league, killer or not. Now get out of my way, I've got a bridge builder to kill." Zabuza stared the boy down without showing any sign of tension, though he was ready to act if he needed it. He'd known many like the blond, those that killed just for the pleasure of experiencing the death of another. He had never expected to see such an attitude in a child so young in this day and age, however, especially one from Konoha. He was almost curious what had caused this boy to go so insane.

"The bridge is my mission. Strong ninja don't fail missions." Naruto replied, the air around him starting to ripple with the heat he was beginning to give off. Zabuza remained unfazed. The boy's fire jutsu was another mystery, one he could not easily explain. It must have been some kind of bloodline, but one unlike any he had seen in the past. Even Haku needed seals to use his special power. Regardless, as interesting as he was, the boy was an enemy. He'd be a lot less interesting once he was dead.

"Then I'll kill you, too." Zabuza grabbed the handle of his massive blade, the muscles in his arm tensing as he began to support its weight and prepared to cleave the boy in two. Naruto simply began laughing.

"I want you to try. I will make you **burn.**" There was an audible snap as Naruto burst into flame, his flesh peeling away and vanishing into the fires only to regrow and begin again. He was still laughing, the fires licking at the sides of his mouth as his tongue seemed to boil in his saliva, the muscles in his cheeks and the occasional flash of jawbone becoming visible through the flaming flesh. The mercenary fodder behind his prey took a collective step back at the horrifying sight. He was pleased to see the masked men still standing tall.

"I will not let you hurt Zabuza-sama." Haku declared with certainty, stepping in front of his master as Naruto just laughed again.

"Then stop me." Naruto was off like a shot, flying through the air like a flaming cannonball as he came down towards Zabuza with every intent to kill. He never made contact, however, as something violently connected with his midsection and knocked the wind out of his lungs, throwing him to the ground. For a moment, Zabuza regarded the flaming blond before he slowly released his blade, disinterest showing on his face. He had other matters to attend. Haku was better suited to take the boy, anyway.

"Take care of him, Haku." Zabuza said dismissively, leaving the small clearing behind with his band of mercenaries following closely. Naruto regained his feet and growled, glaring at Zabuza as he left and pouncing once more. Just like before, he was intercepted by a blur, landing roughly on his back and rolling to a crouch to glare at the masked boy.

"You will _not_ harm Zabuza-sama." Haku insisted, his left shoe blackened and smoking. He was glad his assumption had proven true, and that kicking the boy fast enough prevented the flames from burning him. Still, he doubted his shoes could take much more punishment. He'd likely have to pull out all the stops if those flames didn't die down. Naruto growled at him, rising to his feet with a frown, his flames intensifying. He glared at Haku for a moment before a slight smirk found its way to his face.

"You're strong." Naruto noted, staring into the unblinking surface of Haku's mask. "I'll enjoy killing you."

"Why do you kill?" Naruto blinked at the question, his smirk faltering a little. "Do you even have a reason?"

"I'm strong. The strong kill the weak. I don't need a reason." Naruto replied, but it sounded hollow. He had never considered it. The idea of needing a reason never crossed his mind. Looking for one, he found himself wanting.

"You are not strong."

_Why do you struggle?_

Naruto's smirk disappeared completely, confusion crossing his face as he once again found himself glancing towards the trees.

"You have no purpose."

_Why are you alive?_

Naruto took several steps back, as if struck, glaring openly at the masked boy now. He hated masks. He couldn't see his eyes. Couldn't see his face. Was he even speaking, or were the voices tricking him now? The shadows were after him again. Where were his eyes? Did he even have eyes, or was he another red eyed cat? He couldn't tell, hated that he couldn't tell. He decided then that he would break that mask. He hated the faceless. If the boy didn't want a face, Naruto would burn it off for him.

"Someone like you could never be strong." Haku continued, watching as the blond once again seemed to recoil. His words were clearly upsetting him.

"Shut up!" Naruto insisted, his eyes wide and crazed. "I know strong! We're both strong. Don't tell me I'm not strong when we're the same!"

"We are not the same. I'm nothing like you." Haku quickly replied with a shake of his head. "You will never be truly strong without a purpose greater than yourself."

Naruto's eyes narrowed and his teeth clenched, the words of the Hokage coming back to him from all those years ago.

"_No matter how powerful you become, you would never be strong with that mindset, Naruto. When you want to protect something important to you, more important than your life, and you're willing to fight to protect that important thing, only then can you truly be strong."_ Sarutobi's words seem to echo in his mind as he glared at Haku, wanting so desperately to tear that faceless mask off, and take the face underneath with it.

"Why...are...you...strong..." Naruto barely managed to say it between a growl and a whisper, his body visibly shaking with rage as he clutched at his head and glared at his enemy.

"I am Zabuza-sama's tool. I live to serve him, and that desire is my strength." Haku stated, watching Naruto flinch with some curiosity, "When a person has something important to protect, that's when they can truly become strong."

"...Protect...?" Naruto muttered, the flames around him dying out into small embers on his skin as his shaking worsened. Haku watched in silence as the shaking became more of a vibration as the blond seemed to quietly laugh, building and building until he threw his head back and was cackling as loudly as his breath allowed. Haku took a slight step back at this, confused. Had the boy snapped? He had already seemed fairly unhinged, but now....he looked downright mad.

"LIES!" Naruto finally shouted as he finished his laughter, his exclamation punctuated by his flames bursting back to life at full intensity. "It's all a lie. Protection makes you weak. How can you be strong while worrying about someone else? How can sacrificing your life for theirs be strong? You'd be dead! That's the opposite of strong!"

Naruto glared at Haku fully now, his smirk once again on his face as he pointed towards the mask he wore.

"I will kill your strength!" He exclaimed, "I will prove to you and the old man that my strength is real. I will kill your strength and make you watch him die. Then we'll see how strong you are."

Haku narrowed his eyes, reaching for his senbon as his entire body tensed. This boy was serious. He could feel the killer intent that was practically rolling off his body. Every hair on his body was standing on end, but he did not let it faze him. The blond had threatened Zabuza. Haku's own fear did not matter.  
"I will never let you harm Zabuza-sama." Haku repeated, pulling out his weapon of choice as Naruto's smirk expanded to a toothy grin.

"Then _stop_ me." Naruto repeated as well. Haku gave no reply as Naruto rushed forward, responding only with action. He would not allow this boy to reach Zabuza, even if he had to die trying.

----------------------

In Fire and Ice

----------------------

His foot found purchase and he pushed off again, his legs and back straining from the effort to keep him horizontal as he continued to run up the length of the trunk. It was getting hard the higher he got, as the branches grew in number and the trunk continued to shrink and bend under his weight. He glanced to his side, seeing that his teammate was right behind him on his own tree, weaving between the branches and swaying with the breeze as the tree moved under him.

They had been practicing almost non-stop for the past three days, despite the fact that Kakashi guy told them to take it easy and save their strength for the fight to come. They knew better, though. Zabuza had escaped the battle mostly unharmed, while their own Jounin-sensei had suffered a cracked rib, and was still not back to a hundred percent. Against a monster like him, they'd need all the training they could get, and they had no idea when he might finally strike.

"Ah shit!!!!" He heard Kiba shout, glancing towards another tree as he saw the Inuzuka boy falling towards the ground and bouncing off nearly every branch on the way down. He didn't have time to spare more than a glance, though, as he was approaching the end of his own run. He took another step and felt nothing but friction as he failed to stick to the tree, swearing under his breath as he slashed at the bark and reflexively pushed away.

'Here comes the tricky part,' he thought as gravity reasserted its hold over him and insisted he return to the ground immediately. When they had began, it was no big deal as they slipped and fell, but now that he was nearly 90 meters off the ground, landing became something of a task in and of itself. He descended a ways before lashing his foot out towards the tree again, kicking off towards another and kicking off of that as well. He flipped, his feet finding a branch large enough to support his weight for a few seconds before he kicked off again, repeating this process all the way to the ground and landing in a crouch that gave way to a roll, returning to his feet with an intake of air.

He was starting to get used to the adrenaline rush of doing that, he realized, when he noticed his hands were no longer shaking after landing. He looked up, trying to spot the kunai mark he had left, and failed miserably. It wasn't until he activated the Sharingan that he could pinpoint the telltale depression in the wood very nearly at the top of the tree. He frowned slightly under his mask as his eyes wandered, spotting the mark Shino had just left in his own tree. The detail the Sharingan was capable of annoyed him at that moment. He could easily tell Shino had gotten more than a meter higher than him. There was a whistling of air an instant before Shino hit the ground, landing solidly on his feet before standing up straight. He also seemed to look up from where he had just descended, but whether he was marveling at the height he reached, disappointed for not getting higher, or ultimately uninterested in either, Sasuke could not tell.

"I know I have it. The tree just moves too much at the top." Sasuke said, but even he wasn't sure if he was talking to himself or Shino. Shino just turned slightly towards his teammate, regarding him passively for a moment before looking back towards the trees.

"Hinata and Haruno mastered this quickly. They made it seem...easy." Shino replied in an even tone, somehow managing to sound annoyed and monotone at the same time. "I'm disappointed in my own ability by comparison."

Sasuke only nodded, remembering how the two girls reached the top within one day. And here he was, 3 days later, still several meters from reaching the peak. It was emasculating to be outdone by a pair of kunoichi so casually. It was somewhat understandable with Hinata. She was Hyuuga, the heir to a powerful bloodline, and trained from birth in techniques requiring chakra control Sasuke had never seen before. But Haruno Sakura? That was just insulting. It was bad enough she was a nobody, but she also had a blatant, annoying crush on him.

Sasuke and Shino turned at the sound of barking, seeing Kiba pulling himself out of a bush with his dog barking at him at his heels.

"Quit gloating! You're using all four legs, damn it! That's totally cheating!" Kiba shouted. Akamaru's barks actually sounded like insults, somehow, though Kiba's reactions to them probably helped give that impression.

"I do take solace knowing that I'm not being out-performed by a dog, however." Shino suddenly added, earning a chuckle from Sasuke.

"Agreed." He replied, turning towards the bug user. They locked eyes for a moment, silence persisting between them as they looked at one another almost challengingly. Suddenly, as if signaled, they were both off like a shot, hitting their respective trees in a full run and going horizontal without slowing down. Sasuke grunted and pushed himself faster, climbing higher and higher as he began to serpentine through the closely growing branches. His Sharingan eyes spun as he quickly found the path of least resistance, flowing through it with practiced precision. He could see Shino in his peripheral vision and struggled to push himself faster. This was a race for the top. They would both reach it this time, he could feel it. The only question was which would get there first. He could see the top now, each step causing the entire tree to sway like a bridge in a hurricane. he refused to let that slow him down, though, taking another step and intentionally sending too much chakra to his feet, breaking the bark and hurling him up the last few meters.

They broke through the canopy in tandem, each spotting the other at the apex of their leaps, where gravity seemed to temporarily give them pardon and let them be weightless before pulling them back down. They each landed with an audible clap of sandal against wood, grabbing at the branches at the top for support as the tree swayed under them.

"A draw?" Shino offered, tilting his head as he regarded Sasuke for a moment. Neither one noticed Kiba make it three quarters of the way up his tree before he began to fall.

"Draw." Sasuke sighed, disappointed that he hadn't been fast enough, though simultaneously impressed that Shino had kept up. It wasn't until that moment that he allowed himself to really take in his surroundings, standing atop a tree taller than most buildings he'd been in. The forest was simply breathtaking in the mid-morning sun. He usually wasn't the type to enjoy such things, but something about the Sharingan made it hard not to appreciate it. He could truly see the magnitude of it all. He seemed insignificant in comparison.

The Sharingan saw more than just the view, however. It was truly an eye of details, as even the smallest movement in the forest far below, easily a kilometer or more from their trees, caught his attention almost immediately. It was a large group, moving with a purpose towards the village of waves where Tazuna's bridge was based. From the look of their chakra, at least six of them were ninja.

"Shino-"

"I see them." Shino replied. Sasuke glanced at him in curiously, but said nothing. Another silent decision seemed to pass between the two as they both leapt from the branches on which they stood, very nearly free falling all the way to the ground before starting to rebound between the branches to break their fall. Still, they hit hard and fast, rolling with the impact and getting back to their feet just as quickly.

"Come on, Kiba!" Sasuke shouted out, not looking back to see if he had heard or was following as he headed towards the village.

---------------

Sakura stifled a yawn and brushed some stray hair out of her eyes, blearily keeping an eye on the bridge around her. Geez, building bridges sure was noisy. How could they wake her up so early in the morning and drag her out to such a loud construction site? Didn't they know girls her age needed their beauty sleep? She immensely regretted finishing her training so quickly, now. She had been trying to impress Sasuke, but all she managed to do was get stuck on Tazuna duty with Hinata. If she had pretended to fail, she could still be watching Sasuke train!

She glanced towards the other girl at that thought, watching her stare out over the side of the bridge with an odd look on her face. A salty breeze came in from the sea, blowing over the bridge and filled the air with the scent of the ocean. It also made Sakura's hair all frizzy.

_"Oh, I would kill for a shower right now!" _Sakura sighed at the thought, glancing at Hinata again, admiring her long hair for a moment as it moved gently with the wind. How did she get her hair looking so nice when out in the middle of nowhere for so long? Sakura almost wanted to blame it on good Hyuuga genes.

"So..." Sakura began, trying to think of a topic of conversation to break the silence. Her mind wandered back to Sasuke running up and down a tree, and she ended up voicing the first curiosity that struck her, "What's it like being on Sasuke's team?"

"He's a good ninja. He works well with the team." Hinata replied, not taking her eyes off the ocean. Sakura leaned back on the railing, sparing a glance towards the bridge builder before looking at Hinata again.

"That's not what I mean," She said dismissively, "What's Sasuke himself like? What's it like to be around him?" Sakura asked, watching as the mist began to roll in from the sea. Hinata stood up a little straighter and turned her head, her eyes following the same waves of mist Sakura had seen.

"...quiet." Hinata replied, turning her body fully towards the other side of the bridge. The mist was much thicker now, and was building surprisingly fast. The weather around here sure was odd.

"Well, I know he's quiet, but-" Hinata waved her hand in front of Sakura's face, stopping her mid sentence.

"No, you be quiet." Sakura obliged her, feeling a chill in her arms and tried to rub the goosebumps away as the cool mist filled air flowed past them. It was like a cloud had fallen out of the sky and landed on the bridge. Sakura couldn't even see more than a few meters in front of her, now. Throughout it all, she stayed silent, listening to the subtle sounds of the wind and the crashing of the waves on the piers holding up the bridge. She couldn't understand why Hinata wanted her to be quiet. What was she listening for?

"I don't hear anything..." Sakura whispered, leaning in towards Hinata so she could speak as quietly as possible. The Hyuuga nodded, her eyes locked on the mist in front of them. "It's quiet."

"Can you see the bridge workers?" Hinata asked in a whisper of her own. It suddenly clicked in Sakura's mind that she couldn't hear the sounds of construction anymore. She had been so busy trying to tune it out, she hadn't noticed when it had faded away. She tensed, expanding her senses and regarding the mist closely now, already trying to analyze their situation. Was this genjutsu, or ninjutsu? Could they not hear the bridge workers because this mist was blocking out the sound?

'No,' Sakura thought, pulling out a kunai with slow, deliberate movements as she ran the blade across her palm. 'I can still hear the ocean under us. This isn't genjutsu...so then...the workers must be...'

The sound of a massive splash somewhere in the waters below them caused both girls to jump in surprise, only to hear the sound repeated several times more in an almost rhythmic pattern, as if someone was dropping something heavy off the side of the bridge at regular intervals.

_"The workers!"_ Sakura's eyes widened, clenching the kunai tightly, "We have to find Tazuna!"

"Byakugan!" Hinata hadn't wanted to use her Eyes, but she had no choice. She could only hope Sakura wasn't looking at them. Time seemed to slow as her vision sharpened, the veins on her face becoming pronounced as her gaze pierced through the mist that was thick with chakra. She could see the coils now, like a complex work of knotted yarn hidden within a haze. Seventeen bodies. Fifteen in the water, already dead, their coils dimming as the life left their bodies. Only two remained on the bridge. One stood like a statue, frozen before the perception of her Eyes. The other was in motion, like a man running in molasses, approaching the first with something held high overhead, ready to come down in a horrifyingly final instant. Hinata was already in motion herself, chakra raging through her legs to push her faster than the other, but she couldn't quite manage it. She had less distance to travel, and yet it seemed they would still reach him at the same time. In her wide, nearly 360 degree view, she could see a kunai knife cutting through the air to her side, following beside her. It seemed Sakura had correctly guessed the intent of her charge. This was her back up.

Hinata and Zabuza appeared out of the mist almost in unison as Tazuna's eyes went wide, staring up at the massive cleaver that was preparing to separate his legs from his waist. The Kunai arrived first, flying through the space Zabuza had been preparing to occupy, forcing him to hold back his lunge for the smallest instant to avoid the blow. That was enough, however. Hinata was down on her hands and hit the back of Tazuna's legs with a sweeping kick, throwing the man completely horizontal just as the massive sword tore through the air where he had been, the wind parting around the edge and causing the old man's clothes to flutter just before he hit the hard surface of the bridge on his back. He didn't dare complain about the rough treatment as the girl who saved him returned instantly to her feet. That sword had come close enough to take a little off the end of his beard.

"Not bad, kid." Zabuza quickly recovered from his missed swing, raising the blade high overhead with the full intention to split Tazuna down the middle, "But not good enough!"

A light blow took Zabuza in the chest before he simply exploded, Hinata's chakra tearing the clone apart. Tazuna closed his eyes as he was doused in water, coughing a few times before sitting up as Sakura appeared out of the mist. She stopped in front of Tazuna in a guarded position and drew another Kunai, glancing towards Hinata for a moment to ask, "What was that?"

"A clone. It had much less chakra than he would have." Hinata answered, Turning her face away from Sakura. She focused her mind, time seeming to slow again as she examined the entire length of the bridge, end to end, corner to corner, from the surface to the ocean, looking for their attacker. He was hidden somewhere in the mist, but where precisely, she was having difficulty finding. So much chakra floating in the air was making it hard to see as far as she normally could. Zabuza was the type to know well enough to use that to his advantage.

"We're in trouble, aren't we?" Sakura asked, glancing back and forth nervously into the mist. It was so thick it was almost claustrophobic, and the fact a mad man with a sword longer than she was tall was out there, beyond what she could see, just waiting for the chance to kill her, did not help.

Neither did the fact Hinata refused to answer. She just kept staring out into the mist. What little Sakura could see of her face looked just as nervous as she felt.

--------

Kakashi's eye was on the bridge, but he did not see it. His mind was elsewhere entirely, almost lost in thought. Zabuza was a Jounin, one at his own level, with at least one ally of unknown power. But if this man Gato was as rich and terrible as Tazuna had suggested, he could afford more than one jounin. That left Kakashi in a bad way. Kurenai had a fractured rib, and wouldn't be able to fight well with it at all. Even if she were at a hundred percent, she was only newly a Jounin, still green behind the ears as far as Kakashi was concerned. Then there were the six genin they had under their care, now entirely under Kakashi's. On top of it all, there was the bridge builder, the man upon which their entire mission depended. If he died, it was over. A civilian, an injured jounin and six genin. Eight people Kakashi had to keep alive, against an enemy of unknown strength. That wasn't even counting Tazuna's family or the rest of the village. Nor did it take into account that one of the six genin might very well go on a violent killing spree if provoked, and last time that happened, Kakashi had nearly lost his arm trying to put him down. Not to mention his failure left two children with horrible burns, one of them to the point of crippling.

It went without saying that Kakashi was feeling just a little bit stressed. He began to understand why Asuma had taken up smoking. He could really use a cigarette himself. As that thought came to him, Kakashi turned slightly to regard the woman lying on a futon spread on the floor as another hacking cough wracked her body. He could see her wincing in pain from the involuntary motion and sighed a bit before looking back out the window.

"Breathe deep." He said simply, hearing another cough take her between shallow breaths.

"It hurts to breathe." She replied with pain in her voice.

"Do it anyway," He said as he turned away from the window, "You'll get pneumonia if you don't."

She glared at him indignantly, but said nothing. Instead, she began to breathe deep, taking full breaths with a wince of pain. Finally, Kakashi thought, she wasn't being difficult. He could understand Kurenai's desire to be seen as an equal. If they weren't in the middle of a mission with an enemy at the gates, he might even have humored her. But they weren't equals. He was pulling seniority and she was the one who had managed to get injured. He felt no need to indulge her foolish pride.

"You're the great Copy Ninja, aren't you?" Kurenai asked with labored breath, forcing herself to fully inflate her lungs with each intake of air, despite the pain. "I would have thought you would know at least a dozen medical jutsus." She was in pain, getting more irritable by the minute from the lack of relief, and there wasn't a god damned thing Kakashi could do about it. He had already given her all the pain killers they had in their field kits, and Wave seemed too poor to have a doctor, let alone a pharmacy. She had no choice but to suffer through it, and Kakashi had no choice but to watch her do it. He almost found himself wishing Zabuza would hurry up and attack, just to give him something else to worry about.

"Sorry," He began apologetically, "I've never had a medic try to heal me to death."

She tried not to laugh, she really did. Laughing hurt just as much as coughing, and it wasn't even that funny in the first place. But her sense of humor seemed to want her to suffer just as much as her ribs did, and she found she was chuckling despite herself. She started to sit up, wincing a little from the movement, but it wasn't so terrible that she couldn't take it.

"Don't make jokes. It's cruel of you to make an injured woman laugh." Kurenai muttered, getting to her feet as Kakashi stepped away from the window.

"Lay back down. You need to rest." Kakashi insisted, moving his hand towards her shoulder only for her to swat it aside.

"I've been in that bed for days. I can stand and walk on my own for awhile." She replied irritably, trying to stretch the kinks out of her joints without upsetting her injury. She would have said more, but her eyes were drawn towards the window, towards the view of the bridge. A view that was now obscured by mist.

"Shit." Kakashi swore under his breath. Hinata, Sakura and Tazuna were on the bridge. Three lives, all dependent on him. Why was he here? Kurenai could take care of herself. Zabuza was after the bridge builder, not her. He should have been watching Tazuna like a hawk.

"Go, I'll catch up with you." Kurenai said quickly. Without even giving the Kunoichi another glance, Kakashi was out the door, heading towards the bridge. He had to stop, however, when his eye noticed movement coming in from outside the village, his ears picking up the sounds of panicked cries of fear and surprise. He turned, seeing a large group of mercenaries and bandits coming out of the forest, from the direction he had taken the genin to practice tree walking. He knew them enough to know they would attack the group, if they hadn't already, and he could see from here the telltale signs of ninja among the enemy ranks. Kiba, Sasuke and Shino. Three more lives that were in his hands, plus those of the villagers that wouldn't get away.

Could he trust those three against those numbers? Compared to Hinata And Sakura, against Zabuza and possibly more within the mist? As much as he would have liked to debate it with himself, he didn't have time before yet another interruption captured his attention, turning towards a massive pillar of fire rising from the forest in the distance. Naruto. Something had set him off and quite possibly the entire town would pay for it before the day was done.

Kakashi was a Jounin, an elite ninja who had survived countless missions and even a war or two over the course of his career. He was hailed as a genius, and had always had a highly analytical mind to cope with crisis situations and consider his options. Here he was, one man, three options, eight lives in the balance. Could he leave Hinata and Sakura to fend off Zabuza themselves? Could he leave Sasuke, Shino and Kiba to stop an invading force from destroying the village? Could he leave Kurenai to fend for herself with her injury? Could he leave Naruto to rampage unchecked? Could he afford to even think about it, wasting time he wasn't going to get back?

Kakashi wasn't between a rock and a hard place. He was crushed under an avalanche pressing against a steel plate. Despite all his experience, he was hesitating, losing seconds he couldn't spare. Despite his supposed genius, his analytical mind, all he could find himself thinking was 'what now?'

--------

Haku twisted through the air to avoid another blast of fire, kicking off a nearby tree as the ground he had been approaching suddenly exploded in flames. He cursed as he landed in a roll, Naruto leaping above him, flaming tail trailing behind him as he passed. He refused to let him get ahead, though. He could not allow the blond to pass. His hands flashed through the seals, the names of the Jutsu never crossing his lips before he lashed out with a gust of bladed wind. Trees all around the blond were severed in a single blow, knocked off their bases as they crashed to the ground in front of him, many never reaching it before being lodged between other trees. Naruto hit the wall of wood feet first, charring the wood but was still forced to hop off.

Haku didn't pause, each hand going through the seals of a separate jutsu as he threw another barrage of blades, hoping to drop the trees on the boys head. Attacking him with the wind directly would be pointless as long as he was covered in fire, but maybe he'd have more luck with his second jutsu.

"Moero!" Naruto growled and leapt back, holding out his hands as waves of fire exploded from his open palms. It rained flaming embers and ash for several moments, the trees that hit the ground around him now half as tall as they had been with smoking half circles burned into them. A solid wall of water blindsided him as he was burning the trees, throwing him into the wall of trees behind him. He growled again, his fires unaffected by the water that was now evaporating from the heat, spotting Haku at the source of the attack, making more hand signs.

"Tokero!" He commanded, a massive pillar of fire exploding from the earth where Haku stood. Though nothing remained but a smoldering crater where Haku had once stood, Naruto knew he had missed. There had been no screams. He ducked slightly as another barrage of wind sliced through the air around him, cleaving apart the trees holding up the fallen logs behind him. He barely had time to turn around before they smashed him into the ground, burying him in fallen trees.

'Is it over?' Haku wondered, narrowing his eyes as the smell of burning wood reached his nostrils. No. It would never be that easy. He watched as smoke began to rise from one of the logs before it seemed to catch fire at the center, burning out in a ring that revealed a hole within the wood. A hand shot up from the hole and braced itself against the edge, more bone than flesh, barely held together but for a few ligaments and tendons. But the flesh was returning, crawling up the hand from the wrist and adding volume to the badly abused limb until it was once again whole, the skin never quite managing to return entirely before it began to burn away again. To Haku's horror, the boy pulled himself further from the hole he had made, his face a massacre of flesh and bone, massive lacerations crisscrossing his head, with the tell tale signs of a crushed skull underneath the mangled muscles and skin. Blood fell from his body like water off a swimmer, his arteries and veins closing their tears before they seemed to crawl back into place, over and under his flesh, like ivy growing at high speed. Haku's jaw was hanging open now, his eyes wide as Naruto's skull returned to its natural shape with audible snaps, the cracks disappearing before the flesh returned to cover it. In that instant, the blond turned on him, and he was sure his heart would stop. Haku was the rocks against which the waves of Naruto's killer intent smashed, each one crashing with more force than the one before it. His left eye, red and filled with a savage fury, glared at him with promises of suffering. His right was an empty socket, though in the depths of that darkness, he could swear he could see a building light, as if the evil soul within the body now had a venue of escape. The eye began to regrow however, as the rest of his wounds closed. He opened his mouth wide as his jaw bone set itself, his teeth returning as sharpened fangs while his tongue rose out of the back of his throat. As the flesh returned to his face, he let out a roar, his body once again bursting into crimson flame. Throughout it all, Haku did not move. He simply sat and watched as the body of this boy seemed to reassemble itself after being crushed under the weight of those trees. Was he even human? Was he even mortal? Haku didn't know if he wanted to find out.

Naruto's roar drew to a close as his hair returned, looking down at his hands as the last of his bones snapped back into place. His eyes were locked on Haku now, his decision to kill Zabuza briefly forgotten as all his hate and anger settled fully on the boy before him.

_Why do you struggle?_

'To become strong.' He thought with absolute resolution, glaring at his intended prey.

_Why are you alive?_

'To become strong!' He decided without hesitation, pulling himself fully from the hole.

'**If you desire strength, then take of my Power, and do with it what you will.**'

"Youkou Ninpou," Naruto's hands formed a seal Haku could not recognize as the flames around his body grew stronger. The long, flaming tail swayed in the air lazily for a few moments before it seemed to stand straight up, towering high above him.

"Nibiton: Pyo!" Naruto's words were punctuated by a massive explosion that threw Haku clear off his feet, rolling several meters before forcing himself to stand. Waves of heat were coming off his body that rivaled any Haku had felt before as the trees upon which he stood instantly ignited. For several minutes, Naruto stood within a massive bonfire of trees, the intense flames forming a tower that seemed to touch the sky. Even through his mask, Haku could feel the heat of it, had to shield himself with his arms and look away. Even then, he felt the need to escape the heat, taking multiple steps back despite himself. Finally, the trees had burnt themselves out, and the fires died down. Smoke and ash hung heavy in the air, but with the flames gone, Haku's hands flashed through several seals, summoning forth a great wind the blew through the forest, pushing the smoke away with violent efficiency. With the air clear, Haku could see Naruto unhindered, his entire body tensing in preparation for whatever was coming. Naruto stood now as always, with his flesh burning away in his aura of fire, though it now seemed to twist and writhe around his body. It would gather with an odd purpose, flowing into odd patterns and shapes before dispersing again, making it seem almost alive. And above it all, a second tail now waved lazily through the air alongside the first.

Naruto looked up and locked his gaze onto Haku again, a crazed smile on his face as he charged. His right arm was pulled back as if ready to strike, with fingers outstretched like a claw. Haku tensed his legs, hoping back as Naruto reached him, striking towards his face in a raking motion. Fire twisted and flowed over the arm and down towards his hand, taking on a clear shape of blades that spread several inches out from his hand, extending his range enough that Haku's mask split into four pieces that immediately burst into flame. The boy gasped in surprise, squeezed his eyes shut and tearing it from his face as quickly as he could. For the first time, Naruto could see his prey's face, could see the fear in his eyes. He had a very feminine face, unblemished by flaw with a natural beauty that was rare for a man. Naruto hadn't been expecting his face to be so pretty, but that would only make it more satisfying to tear it off. He struck out again, claws of fire raking through the air, barely missing the tip of Haku's nose as the boy leapt back a much greater distance this time. Naruto refused to let up however, the claws flowing together into a blade several feet long that he quickly brought up in an attempt to split Haku in two. Haku ducked it quickly, lashing out his foot once more to take Naruto in the chest, hurling the two apart and giving him some space as he struggled to steady his breathing, trying to slow his heartbeat back to reasonable levels.

"I cannot fail here. It's clear to me now that you are nothing but a monster. I will never allow you to reach Zabuza." Haku announced, glaring at the recovering blond with his own wave of killer intent. There was no mercy in his eyes now, only determination.

"You said that already." Naruto remarked, the fire flowing across his body almost taking the shape of armor as he stalked towards Haku with the two tails of fire swaying behind his burning body, "You'll die trying."

"No, I can't die. You'll kill him if I die." Haku replied. The smirk on Naruto's face was enough to tell him he was right. "If I am to die, I will drag you down to hell with me."

"Hyouton." Haku spoke, his hands in a strange seal as his words carried oddly in the air. Haku's skin seemed to pale slightly, his lips taking on an unhealthy shade of blue as he breathed in deep. As he released it, his breath was visible, carrying a chill across the small clearing that seemed to make the wind stop and Naruto's fire flicker for a moment. He almost shivered, looking down at his own body angrily, seeing goosebumps on his skin as it burned away. Silence filled the air as an unnatural stillness settled on the clearing, as if everything had just stopped. Even Haku had stopped moving, his body growing paler, colder.

"Hyoutai no jutsu." Haku whispered, his breath hanging in the air as frost spread from the edges of his lips. Naruto was already in motion, his flames building around his arms as he approached, unknowing and uncaring of whatever defense Haku was attempting. Their eyes met as Haku raised one frost covered hand to intercept the incoming blow. Naruto's fist lashed out and Haku caught it in his palm, the fire being snuffed out in an instant as icicles erupted out of the length of Naruto's arm, his blood frozen into crystallized spikes that shredded the entire length of his frost covered limb. With a cry of pain, Naruto stumbled back, gripping his frozen shoulder in agony and falling to one knee. He looked up at Haku through a wince, seeing that he was almost entirely covered in ice, save for the palm of his left hand, which was clearly burnt and icing over.

"This...hurts..." Naruto chuckled, though it came out forced. "What is this?" He was on edge now, looking up at Haku with some apprehension. The ice on his body cracked as he moved, frost starting to spread across the grass from his feet as he regarded Naruto coldly.

"This is my strength." Haku answered, forming another seal while Naruto returned to his feet. The frozen arm burst into flames, the ice slowly melting as the wounds healed and closed. It was slow, agonizingly slow, but soon Naruto's arm was normal again, no worse for wear.

"Your strength can't stop me." The blond replied, his aura building in intensity again as he threw both arms out towards Haku with a cry of, "Tokero!" A massive pillar of fire erupted from the ground as Haku forced himself to dodge, his ice taking the brunt of the heat and melting almost completely, but returned just as fast as he turned towards the blond. But Naruto was gone, sprinting towards the village on all fours, his flaming tails trailing behind him.

"Makyou Hyoushou!" Haku called out, sheets of ice beginning to form on the sides of the nearby trees. As Naruto ran, sheets of ice like mirrors formed on the trees around him, with images of Haku that seemed to flow across them, from mirror to mirror. Naruto smirked and dashed between some trees, a mirror forming on a tree directly in front of him as Haku emerged from it at high speed.

"Kitsune Souga!" Naruto spun with his hand spread like a claw, blades of fire trailing from his fingertips as he struck. Haku caught him by the wrist, the flames flying from his hand and cleaving through the trees in burning lines as Naruto's entire arm froze again. He flinched and jerked back, sparing barely a glance at the spikes of ice and frozen blood piercing his arm before his shoulder dislocated with an audible crack. He brought his other arm around in the same motion, fingers trailing flames like fangs that came down on Haku from the other side, taking his own arm with it, burning through the frozen flesh that still held it to his body. Haku was smashed against the ground by the flames, his icy covering melting under the intensity as he quickly rolled away.

"Stronger and stronger! Come on, show me all your strength!" Naruto cackled, blood pouring out of the empty socket where his arm had formerly been before flesh and bone began sprouting from the hole, knitting together to reform the lost limb. He was moving forward again, towards the village, not waiting for Haku to recover, but knowing he was close behind. It wouldn't be any fun if he wasn't.

----------------

Hinata took a few labored breaths as she continued to sidestep towards the end of the bridge, slowly, deliberately making whatever progress she could towards the edge of the mist. Sakura was behind her with Tazuna in tow, still clutching a kunai protectively in front of her as they all moved and waited for Zabuza to strike. Hinata's eyes were locked on the mist, the veins in her face bulging from effort as she examined everything around them, looking for any sign of Zabuza's approach. He'd already come at them so many times, from several angles, and each time she had only barely managed to stop his assault before he would flee back into the mist. His methods were confusing, almost maddening. She knew he was stronger, faster, and just generally better. And yet with every approach, he allowed her to stop his attacks. Why? She couldn't figure it out. He was testing her, of that she was certain, but she couldn't fathom a reason for it. What was stopping him from just killing them and completing his mission? It certainly wasn't her. She was already feeling winded just from fighting him off thus far. He wasn't even using clones anymore, striking out personally each time, and she couldn't understand why. It didn't make sense.

"Do you see him?" Tazuna spoke up, though an angry look from the pink haired girl immediately shut him up as she continued to corral him towards the end of the bridge like he were an unruly cattle. If this were any other situation, he'd go off on the girl for being so disrespectful to her elders, but something about the psychopath in the mist with the giant sword made him decide holding his tongue would be the smarter decision. Sakura continued to push and pull Tazuna down the bridge, slowly but surely, all the while holding a Kunai at the ready. She was doing her best not to shake from the fear, to ignore the overwhelming urge to just take off running and not look back. She was fairly proud of herself for succeeding thus far, though it helped that she constantly reminded herself that such moves would be instant death. The only reason she was still alive was thanks to Hinata's eyes.

"Sakura!" Hinata called out as she noticed motion at the edge of her vision, coming from behind. He was attacking from her blind spot more and more, striking towards Tazuna directly. Was that his intention? Was he probing the Byakugan for weakness, using this opportunity to study a powerful bloodline of Konoha for future reference? The thought of some other Hyuuga on a future mission dying because she allowed a man like Zabuza to discover its drawbacks made her sick, but she tried not to dwell on it as she flipped over Sakura and Tazuna, who had taken a dive towards the ground as soon as Hinata had spoken. She could see a barrage of shuriken coming in from behind as she focused her eyes, the veins bulging in her face and time seeming to slow down once more while her perception increased. Her hands lashed out towards the incoming projectiles, trailing chakra as she knocked them out of the sky with her fingertips. She spotted another flash of moment to her right and caught the last two shuriken in the barrage before spinning to the side and throwing them into the mist, though she couldn't tell if they had found their target.

"Those are some interesting eyes, little girl." Zabuza's voice carried over the entire bridge, coming from everywhere and nowhere. He was using auditory genjutsu again. "I never realized the Byakugan came in red. A variant evolution?"

_"What does he mean by Red?"_ Sakura glanced at Hinata's back as she pulled Tazuna back to his feet, seeing the girl stiffen at the mentioning of her eyes. It suddenly dawned on her that Hinata had been hiding her eyes this entire time. She was constantly facing away, and whenever Zabuza struck from behind, she would jump over them to intercept. She hadn't actually seen Hinata's doujutsu yet... "Why are you hiding your eyes?"

"It doesn't matter right now, does it?" Hinata tried to say it confidently, but her voice trembled. She didn't dare look over her shoulder, instead glaring into the mist in front of her and relying on her wide vision to see the confused look on Sakura's face. She desperately wished Zabuza had kept his mouth shut. She had hidden what He had done to her for so long...she had begun to hope it could stay that way. Zabuza began to laugh, his voice still seeming to come from everywhere and nowhere. It was a very unsettling thing.

"A weak Hyuuga woman with an unknown Byakugan, ripe for the taking." Zabuza's voice carried over the bridge again, the tone of it sending shivers down Hinata's spine. "You're more valuable than the bridge builder. Playtime's over."

"Sakura, please, take Tazuna and run!" Hinata practically screamed, her entire body trembling as she locked on to Zabuza's chakra coils coming at her from the left. She spun towards him, watching him approach in slow motion as he tossed a handful of shuriken towards Sakura and Tazuna with the cleaver coming down at her with a one handed slash. She was vaguely aware of crying out a warning to Sakura as she sidestepped the slash, lashing out towards Zabuza's abdomen with chakra burning in her hands, determined to rupture his organs. He leaned back, pulling his cleaver out of the ground as he went, backstepping just out of her reach as her palm strike hit nothing but air.

Sakura heard Hinata cry out and reacted instinctively, pulling Tazuna towards her while spinning them both around, trying to pull them out of the way of whatever was coming, but she wasn't quick enough. Sakura's eyes widened as the shuriken struck, not even noticing the ones that missed as what had been aimed at Tazuna's head instead took her in the chest. She looked down in shock, her outcry of pain dying in her throat as she looked at three star shaped blades lodged firmly in her torso, memories of health class returning to her as she realized they had impaled her in the sternum. Blood leaked out around the wounds in a steady flow as she slowly reached up towards them, feeling weak in the legs. She slumped to her knees with one hand firmly gripping Tazuna's shirt hem for support, the other wrapped around the weapons stuck in her chest as she took in several ragged, shallow breaths. She was too afraid to breathe any deeper than that, unsure if the blades had reached her heart

Tazuna grabbed at the pink haired girl's arm as she slumped to the ground, the adrenaline rushing through his veins helping as he bodily dragged her towards the end of the bridge at a decent clip. He took one last look at the black haired one fending off the assassin before turning his head and concentrating on fleeing. He regretted leaving her behind, he really did, but there was no saving her now. What was important was getting out of this damnable mist, moving the girl to safety and getting the adult ninja in the group to kill this bastard for what he had done.

Zabuza took one glance towards the retreating bridge builder before placing his hand back on his shuriken box, grunting in surprise as Hinata's leg lanced out and managed to kick it clean off his belt, tearing the straps that held it on. He had to give her credit, that was pretty good. She twisted from the blow, placing her foot back on the ground and spinning into a back fist towards his abdomen that he dodged back to avoid. His free hand came up to support his cleaver as he brought it down in a horizontal slash towards the girl's mid-section, watching with some surprise as she hopped straight up. Hinata's byakugan was at full power now, the cleaver seeming to be moving at almost a snail's pace as it split the wind. She managed to pick her feet up just enough to clear the blade, the back passing within centimeters of the sole of her sandal. She used this to her advantage, remembering the treewalking exercise and adhering herself to Zabuza's blade with chakra as he completed his slash and took her with it. Zabuza blinked as he looked at the empty space in front of him, feeling the extra weight of the blade he was holding out behind him and turning his head in time to see the girl lashing out towards his throat with another palm strike. Hinata had to pull her attack back as Zabuza suddenly released the blade, but she had been expecting that. She pushed more chakra into her feet and jumped off, having the added benefit of hurling the large sword clean over the side of the bridge behind her as she struck out towards Zabuza again.

"I'm impressed!" Zabuza announced, catching Hinata by the wrist and flinging her across the bridge. She smashed through a stack of wooden planks before hitting the support bars of some scaffolding, which promptly collapsed on her. Hinata struggled to stand, pushing the weight off of her and returning to her feet just in time to see Zabuza on top of her, one hand lashing out and grasping her around the neck. "The bridge builder will get his soon enough, but first its time for you to go to sleep."

Hinata let out a choked gasp as Zabuza began squeezing off her air flow, lifting her clean off her feet as his massive hand crushed her neck like a vice. She grabbed him around the wrist for support, lashing out with several kicks to the abdomen and chest that he seemed to completely ignore. She was getting lightheaded as he increased the pressure, her lungs burning for air and her vision starting to tunnel. Zabuza raised an eyebrow as he saw the veins in her face bulge again, her blood red eyes glaring into his fiercely as she lifted her hand, fingertips extended. She could see his bones, his organs, his coils, his chakra. She could see it all. Even the tenketsu on his arm.

"Ha...k..ke..." She gasped out, her hand lashing out with surprising speed and stabbing him repeatedly in the arm. Zabuza grunted a bit, feeling like her fingertips were needles jamming into his flesh. His arm was suddenly getting numb as he noticed the pinprick bruises that appeared on his flesh. Before he could stop himself, he lost his grip and dropped the girl to the floor. She collapsed in a heap as she coughed and choked, desperately inhaling the oxygen she had been denied as Zabuza cradled his arm, watching it twitch involuntarily before glaring down at her.

"What the hell did you do to my arm, you bitch?!" He growled out, lashing out with a kick that took Hinata in the abdomen, robbing her of the oxygen she had just regained and throwing her across the bridge. Her back collided with the metal railing on the side of the bridge and her mouth opened in a silent scream, collapsing again and vomiting her lunch over the edge as she once again tried to re-inflate her lungs. She did her best to return to her feet, using the railing for support while she struggled to breathe. She wasn't able to keep the Byakugan active anymore, the blood draining from her eyes as they returned to their natural color and everything seemed to speed up. Zabuza was on her in an instant, his fist pulled back for a punch as she closed her eyes and braced herself for pain.

Only, it never came. She opened her eyes slowly, looking up to see the white haired Jounin, Kakashi, she think his name was, standing over her. Zabuza's fist was caught in his palm, and the two seemed to be struggling against one another.

"Hinata, go help Sakura," Kakashi said calmly, lifting his headband to reveal the sharingan in his left eye, "I'll make this quick."

---------

Kiba frowned as he ran, following closely behind the two genin that weren't on his team. He wasn't entirely sure what they were running towards, or from, or whatever was going on, cause neither of the jackasses in front of him were the talkative type. He was glad they weren't on his team, to be honest. The silence would have driven him crazy. He sent a glance towards Akamaru as they ran, seeing the apprehensive look on his face. The dog returned the look with a few barks, catching Kiba's eyes for a few moments. Akamaru may have been a dog, but there was intelligence in his gaze, something most would see as a distinctively human trait.

"Yeah, I feel it too...Only reason I'm following these jerks." Kiba said, as if in reply, though no one but him could have understood that Akamaru had spoken. "There's killing intent all over the place."

Kiba's nostrils flared as the village came into view, Akamaru barking his findings to his partner. Kiba nodded without saying a thing. He knew Akamaru could smell it too, the blood in the air. Already he could see the men ransacking the village. Armed men breaking down doors and dragging people out into the streets, ignoring their cries as women were torn from their children, men from their families. The lucky ones were being slaughtered outright. The rest...

"Why didn't you bastards say anything about an attack? I could have been running a lot faster than this!" Kiba growled out, putting his hands together into a seal and channeling his chakra. "Gijyu Ninpou: Shikyaku no Jutsu!"

Kiba was down on all fours in a matter of moments, his fingernails extending into claws as his fangs sharpened and his eyes narrowed into slits. He was off at high speed within seconds of completing the jutsu, blurring past Sasuke and Shino with Akamaru at his side as the two descended into the fray.

Sasuke watched Kiba overtake them before turning his gaze back on the approaching battle, his sharingan rotating slowly as he took it all in. There were at least sixty armed men down there, all of them preoccupied with either raiding the homes for valuables, assaulting the women or murdering villagers in the street. Most of the villagers had already armed themselves with whatever they could and were fighting back, but they were just as quickly being put down by the five ninja in the crowd. Sasuke could easily spot them from the way they carried themselves, though it didn't look like any of them wore a headband. They weren't concerning themselves with the women or the homes like the mercenaries and bandits. Instead, they were systematically taking out those that had armed themselves and were fighting back. They were destroying whatever resistance the villagers could manage.

Sasuke quickly found Kiba and his dog in the crowd, tearing through the bandits and the mercenaries like a reaper in the mist. He was totally ignoring the ninja, instead concentrating on the men who were attacking women or children.

'That moron, can't he see the bigger picture? The ninjas are the real risk.' Sasuke thought to himself as they approached the village, turning his attention on the ninja in question. Damn, it looked like they had spotted Kiba. All five of them were making a beeline for him.

"Shino, we need to concentrate on those five. If we take out the ninja, the villagers should be able to defend themselves from the bandits without much help." Sasuke quickly said, pointing out the five ninja as the two reached the first of the houses. Shino nodded his head, accepting the plan as he rose his hands into a seal.

"Be cautious, Sasuke. At least one of them is likely a Jounin." Shino remarked evenly, feeling the colony buzzing to life within him as he called on his soldiers to rise to the surface, emerging from their burrows and scurrying across his body to his arms and face. Sasuke sent a curious glance at him, but said nothing. They were in the midst of the fighting now, ignoring the bandits rushing the homes around them as they focused on the ninja they had spotted in the crowd.

"No, please! Let go of me!" A woman cried out, struggling against the laughing man dragging her towards the street, one hand grabbing her by the hair as he lifted a large dagger in the other. He seemed to vanish in a blur as something large collided with his body, dropping the woman to the ground as she quickly scrambled away. She barely even looked back to see the body who had just knocked her attacker out cold, instead fleeing for safety.

Kiba glanced her way, making sure she wasn't being attacked again, before he turned his attention to the mayhem around him. Akamaru barked out a warning and he quickly dodged away, narrowly avoiding a barrage of Shuriken that were now stuck in the bandit he had just taken down. He glanced up, seeing a man crouched on the edge of a roof, shuriken in hand.

'Shit, they have a ninja, too?' Kiba thought, glancing to the side to see another man approaching with a kunai in hand, handling it with much more skill than he had seen in any of the mercenaries so far. More ninjas? Damn, this might actually be difficult. Kiba moved as more shuriken came at his position, dodging to the side as he approached one of the ninjas he could see in the crowd, in the midst of going through handseals.

"Tsuuga!" Kiba growled out, pushing off from the ground as he entered a spin, his chakra flowing through his body as he twisted into a tight spiral that tore through the air towards his chosen opponent. He felt impact as he tore right through the man, frowning at the smell of sawdust and wood chips. Kawarimi, huh? Where did that bastard go?

"Raiton: Raikou no jutsu!" Kiba heard Sasuke call out as he arrived, followed by the distinct crack of electricity and the sound of a man crying out in pain. Wherever that bastard had gone, Sasuke had apparently intercepted him with a lightning bolt.

"Not bad, Sasuke! I might actually start to respect you a little!" Kiba called out to the other genin, who only glanced at him through his weird red eyes before focusing on the other ninja that were emerging from the crowd.

"Stay focused, Inuzuka. We will need to work together to take them all." Shino took position next to Kiba, his eyes on the ninja in front of them. He completely ignored the boy's snide reply, completely focused on the colony within him. The hive was a mass of activity, the drones within their burrows feeling the flows of chakra in the air and relaying this info to his mind. His gaze crossed their enemy, locking onto the one his colony was telling him had the greatest chakra reserves and quickly focused on him. Soldiers marched down his arms, collecting in a writhing mass near his wrists as he held his arms out at the ready. A few scouts were already marching down his legs to spread across the area they would be fighting while a pair of females made their way to his palms, readying themselves for the jump. With the smallest of thoughts, Shino directed his colony as if he and they were one and the same, a veritable hivemind at work. They would not fail him.

"Are they all stopping?" Kiba muttered, his eyes not on the ninja that were surrounding them, but rather on the mercenaries and bandits beyond them. Activity had oddly slowed down as the rampaging men gathered around, apparently eager to see the two groups of ninja go at it. The villagers were equally still, eying their tormentors occasionally while mostly keeping their attention on the ninja, too afraid to run out of fear that doing so may incite the pillaging to continue. Kiba just sighed a little in relief and turned his full attention on the ninja, tensing for the upcoming battle.

"It makes things easier." Sasuke replied, slowly drawing his sword as he looked between their enemies. Four men left standing, two of them drawing weapons themselves while one looked at them tensely and the last just stood calm and ready. His sharingan was at work, taking in every detail, watching the slightest movements in his foes. The one in the middle was a short man with a nervous disposition, face covered in a mask and looking fairly pathetic in general. The sweat pouring down his face and the nervous twitch in his hands suggested he was the least skilled, possibly even a genin, while the other three held themselves with far greater confidence. The two that had armed themselves were taller, each wearing bandanas to cover their faces and handling their weapons with absolute familiarity. The general way they held themselves suggested they were well trained, likely chunin. The last one put Sasuke on edge, as he was much calmer than the rest. He was a well muscled man with a strange weapon hanging from his belt, looking like an axe on one side and a hammer on the other. He held himself evenly, but at the ready, with an almost bored air about him, and yet not betraying any overconfidence, unlike the previous two. Judging from the way Shino hadn't taken his attention off the man for a second, he could only assume this one was the jounin he had spoken of.

'A genin, two chunin and a jounin, huh?' Sasuke thought, sparing a quick glance at his own allies, 'Against three genin and a dog?' He lifted his sword and firmed his jaw under his mask, locking eyes on the jounin. They might actually be in a little trouble here.

Kiba wasn't exactly the smartest guy around, but he could tell that the big guy with the axe-hammer-thing was worrying both of his fellow genin. He had to admit, he held himself differently than the other two, and Kiba didn't like the smell coming off him. He reeked of blood.

"We might have to go all out on that one, Akamaru," Kiba whispered, pulling a small pill out of his pocket. Akamaru barked in reply, staring at the group in front of them and growling. For a moment, the two groups just stood their ground, staring one another down without moving. The short nin gulped as he looked at the three Konoha ninja across from him, unable to take it anymore as he brought his hands together to form a few seals. Sasuke's eyes immediately turned to him as soon as he started to move, dropping his sword as he brought his hands together as well.

"Suiton: Mizurappa no Jutsu!" They intoned in unison, lifting one hand to their mouthes as they completed the Jutsu, pulling down their masks and letting lose with a massive wave of water from their throats. As the water collided in between the two groups, they scattered, Kiba tossing the pill in his hand to Akamaru as the two chuunin flanked around the spray of water to come at him and Shino with their knives at the ready. Kiba ducked a slash aimed at his face while Shino rose his forearm to catch his attacker at the wrist, the soldiers billowing from his sleeves crawling up the chuunin's arm in a mass that was quickly trying to completely encase him. However, he vanished in a puff of smoke, leaving the bugs surrounding a length of wood as shuriken and kunai rained on Shino from above, which he quickly dived away to dodge.

"Back off!" Kiba muttered, kicking the chuunin in the stomach and sending him stumbling back while Akamaru, now red furred and growling loudly, leapt onto Kiba's back.

"Juujin Bunshin!" Akamaru disappeared in a puff of smoke, replaced by an identical copy of his master as the two growled at their chosen opponent. The chuunin narrowed his eyes slightly over the bandana covering the bottom of his face, twirling his knife around before waving at Kiba to attack. The two identical Inuzuka just growled and charged, happy to oblige him.

Sasuke put his mask back in place and picked up his sword, charging forward towards the other ninja. The genin looked up and yelped as he saw Sasuke coming at him, drawing multiple Kunai and shuriken into his hands and hurling them at the approaching Uchiha. Sasuke didn't even slow down, tracking the trajectories of the projectiles with his sharingan as he dodged and weaved in-between them, closing on the Genin and bringing his sword around in a diagonal slash. The genin lifted two Kunai from his belt and crossed them, catching the sword between them and wrenching it out of Sasuke's hands before lashing forward to stab him in the chest.

"You're way too slow." Sasuke muttered, evading the stab and lashing out at the Genin's face with a back fist that took him full in the cheek. His feet left the ground from the impact, twisting through the air before landing roughly in the dirt and not rising again. Sasuke's eyes turned away from the downed Genin towards the Jounin that had yet to move, picking up his sword as he stared at the smirking man.

"Oh, is he finished already? What a shame. I thought he'd last longer than that." The Jounin remarked, arms crossed as he looked towards his other two allies. They were running around like a pair of chickens with their heads cut off against that bug user and the dog boy. It was shameful. "What's wrong, you two? They're just kids, kill them already!"

"Shut up, these kids ain't normal!" One of the Chuunin replied as he dodged another pair of swipes from the twin Kibas, backpedaling all the way to try and get some distance.

"Why don't you quit talking and help us?" The other replied as he once again had to kawarimi away from a swarm of bugs. What the hell was with this kid, anyway? He was like a walking infestation. Couldn't even get close to the little punk without getting a shit ton of bugs crawling up his ass. He had little choice but to resort to a distance game.

"Alright," The Jounin sighed, before leaning back sharply as Sasuke's sword passed through the space he had previously been occupying, "If you insist."

Sasuke's eyes widened as he watched the fist coming at him, seeing its trajectory perfectly and knowing he was about to get punched in the solar plexus. And yet, there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it. His eyes could see it, but his body simply wasn't fast enough to respond. He took the blow to the chest with a grunt of pain, tossed clean off his feet to go flying away towards a nearby house. He didn't stop when he hit the wall, or after hitting the wall of the kitchen, or the living room, or the opposite wall, or even the wall of the neighbor's home. In fact, Sasuke passed clean through three houses until he finally came to a stop, smashing into a support beam of somebody's patio and cracking it clean through before he finally ran out of momentum and slumped to the ground.

"What, that's it? I didn't even use my axe." The Jounin remarked as Sasuke struggled to a kneeling position, looking up at the man as he took the weapon in question off his belt and rose it overhead. "You've gotta live long enough for me to use this at least once."

Sasuke shut his eyes as the axe descended, hitting with such force that the ground split open and exploded. A massive cloud of dust and dirt rose into the air on impact as bits of rock smashed into the surrounding houses and pelted the bandits and villagers that were too close. Everything seemed to stop at once, both Chuunin, Kiba and Shino freezing in the middle of their fight to see what the commotion was. The bandits and villagers also had their eyes glued on the slowly falling cloud of dust, none daring to move as they waited to see what had happened.

The Jounin pulled his axe out of the ground and stood up, turning towards a nearby rooftop to glare at its occupant. Sasuke slowly opened his eyes upon realizing he wasn't dead, looking up to see Kurenai standing over him on the roof.

"K...Kurenai-sensei?" Sasuke muttered in surprise. Wasn't she injured? Not that he was complaining, but what was she doing here? Kurenai looked down at Sasuke with a reassuring smile before standing to her full height, pulling a kunai into her hand and locking eyes with the Jounin on the ground.

"Leave this one to me, Sasuke. Go help the others." Kurenai ordered, raising her free hand to her face in a seal. The Jounin on the floor smirked, resting his axe on his shoulder as he looked up at her.

"You're the teacher, eh? This should be interesting." He said, before turning towards the gathered bandits and mercenaries, "What are you idiots standing around for? The party's only just starting!"

"Shit, what's he getting them riled up for?" Kiba muttered, looking out at the bandits that were now starting to laugh to themselves and eye the villagers hungrily. The last thing these bastards needed was a morale boost.

"So, you ready to go?" The jounin asked, not even sparing Sasuke a second glance as he leapt from the roof, instead fixing his gaze firmly on Kurenai. In the blink of an eye he was on the roof, axe in motion as he cleaved straight through the building with a single swing. Kurenai had moved just as quickly however, twisting through the air and landing on the next building over with a wince as she aggravated her wound. She ignored it, however, turning her full attention on her attacker. At the same time, everyone else seemed to explode into activity, the bandits assaulting the village again as the Chuunin attacked Kiba and Shino, the entire area becoming loud with the sounds of fighting.

"What in the hell is going on out here?" Tazuna muttered in surprise as he finally cleared the mist and got Sakura off the bridge, looking out in horror at the men tearing his beloved village apart. A ragged gasp from the girl at his feet drew the bridge builder's attention back to her, seeing with a grim look that a rather large amount of blood was now staining the front of her dress. What was he supposed to do? She was going to die at this rate, and there wasn't a damn thing he could do about it.

"Sakura!" Tazuna looked up to see the black haired girl rushing out of the mist, falling to her knees next to the pink haired girl. Hinata frowned as she saw the three shuriken embedded in Sakura's chest, channeling some chakra into her fingertips as she tore open the front of her dress to get a clear look at the wound. Tazuna had the good sense to look away when she did so.

"I'm so sorry Sakura, if I had been a little faster, this wouldn't have..." Hinata began, but stopped as Sakura gave her a stern look. The pink haired girl was still breathing shallowly, and didn't seem to have the energy to speak, so instead settled for just glaring at Hinata. Now wasn't the time for the blame game. She needed help, damn it.

"I'm sorry. I'll do what I can. Just please hold on." Hinata muttered, forming a seal as she activated her doujutsu. Sakura's eyes widened as she stared at Hinata's face, watching the veins bulge and her eyes suddenly go bloodshot. The red lines stretching across her eyes grew rapidly, as if blood was leaking into them, until they were completely red. It made her look downright scary.

Hinata did not notice the look on Sakura's face. She didn't even realize she had just activated her doujutsu in plain view for the first time in years. She was too busy concentrating on Sakura's wound, looking through her body to see the extent of the damage. She was lucky, they hadn't completely pierced her sternum. Her heart was fine.

"You're going to be fine, Sakura. Just hold on." Hinata reassured her, reaching into her supply bag for some dressings and bandages before grabbing a firm hold of the weapons. Sakura stared at her with frightened eyes as Hinata slowly counted, swiftly pulling the blades out in the same direction they entered as she hit 'three.' Sakura cried out in pain at this, but it was over quickly as Hinata pressed the dressing over her wounds, applying pressure as it slowly started turning red from the absorbed blood.

"See? You're just fine. That wasn't so bad, was it?" Hinata said, trying to smile at the pink haired girl as she kept pressure on her wound. Hinata released her doujutsu as she looked up at the fighting going on, Seeing Kurenai-sensei fighting someone on the rooftops while Sasuke and Shino were locked in one on one combat with what seemed to be ninja. Kiba had apparently duplicated himself at some point and seemed to be trying to protect the entire village at once from the multitude of bandits and mercenaries in the area.

All that ceased to matter, though, as an explosion of fire erupted from the edge of the village. Everything seemed to stop at once as the eyes of all present turned towards this newest arrival, seeing a boy who seemed to be covered in ice leaping backwards to avoid a massive blast of fire. The sound of a boy cackling like a madman could be heard clear across the village.

Hinata's eyes widened as she saw Him, her entire body locking up and her breath catching in her throat. He was after the first boy on all fours, his body surrounded in flames with two long tails stretching out behind him as he went. Hinata found herself close to hyperventilating.

"Hahaha! Come on! Come on!" Naruto shouted, landing on all fours and digging a small trench in the dirt as he looked towards Haku, who was quickly rising. He grinned, looking around at the gathered villagers, bandits, mercenaries and ninja in search of the second masked man, "Where is your strength?"

'I have to kill him. He's just not going to stop.' Haku thought as he tried to gather his breath. He had used a lot of chakra already, and it didn't seem like the boy was slowing down at all. What was this strange fire jutsu he was using? He just couldn't understand it. He had let the boy lead them all the way to the village, and from the looks of things, Zabuza was around here somewhere. If he didn't end it now, he could very well fail.

"You'll have to go through me to find him. I won't give you that chance." Haku replied, lifting his hands into a seal as he glared at the smirking boy. This was it. He had been reluctant to go all out thus far because of that fire aura, but he no longer had time to play around. He was willing to risk his life for Zabuza. Losing a hand to put an end to this boy would be worth it.

"Heh, you can't stop me. You've already tried." Naruto replied with a grin, his fire burning brighter as he rushed forward. The shape of a clawed hand began to form in the fire around his arm as he went, rising his arm up in preperation for a swipe. Haku simply stood his ground, raising one hand to his face in a seal, holding the other out towards Naruto.

"No, I haven't," Haku replied, ducking the swipe and entering Naruto's guard. He completely ignored the flaming claws that passed over his head, ignored the heat coming off the boy's body, ignored the flames that were inches from him. He was only concentrating on his goal, "Not until now."

Haku thrust his palm into Naruto's chest, aiming for the solar plexus. Naruto grunted in confusion, but Haku didn't notice. His hand was on fire. His ice covering had melted almost instantly, his skin vaporizing shortly afterward. He could feel his flesh burning as he struck, forcing his chakra into the boy as he activated the jutsu. "Sokushi no Hyouga!"

Naruto didn't even have time to scream as ice exploded around his body, encasing him completely. Haku stumbled back, clutching his badly burned hand in pain as he looked at his own handiwork. The boy was frozen solid, sealed completely within a block of ice. He could see the blood inside the ice from where it had burst through his flesh like tiny icicles, his arms, legs and head a mess of frozen blood and torn flesh. However, his torso stood out. It was simply covered in ice. It hadn't frozen all the way through. He could still see the heat of the flames crawling across the boy's chest, under the ice. It was melting.

"What? How..." Haku muttered, clutching his hand. The fire around his torso had been so much hotter than around his limbs. Had his jutsu not been cold enough to freeze him solid? This meant his heart was likely intact. But...his brain was surely damaged. There's no way he could survive...was there? Still, he could see the fire. His ice was strong enough that no normal fire could even touch it, but the heat this boy put off was something else entirely. Was he really alive enough to escape?

"He's...dead?" Hinata muttered, staring at the ice encasing her tormentor. Sakura looked up at her in confusion. Hinata's voice had sounded...hopeful.

"Finally done playing with that runt, Haku?" Zabuza walked out of the mist, his face uncovered and his sword held in his good hand. He looked to have seen better days, bleeding fairly badly from a wound on his face and showing the initial signs of bruising across his torso. Hinata jumped as she heard him, turning towards the jounin in shock.

"How? Kakashi was-"

"He's lost in the mist, playing with clones. He got me good a couple of times, but he relies on his eyes too much." Zabuza replied, turning towards the bridge builder who was now cowering and slowly backing away. "It wasn't easy finding my sword again, bitch. Once I'm done with the bridge builder, I'm gonna make you regret kicking it off the bridge."

"Shit!" Sasuke muttered, moving towards the bridge only to have the chuunin move between them, lashing out with his knife in a slash Sasuke quickly parried with his sword.

"You think I'm letting you get away? Don't even try it." The chuunin said. Kurenai and Shino met similar results with their own opponents, while Kiba and Akamaru took three steps towards Zabuza before a small barrage of senbon hit the ground in front of them.

"Don't take another step, or you'll end up like him." Haku said sternly, gesturing to the ice block that still held Naruto. His eyes lingered on the block however, seeing that a small cavity was forming in the center. The blond had changed position inside, and his face had already started to heal. He was glaring directly at Haku.

"Damn it..." Kiba muttered, looking between the ice block, Haku and Zabuza. He wasn't sure whether or not he was surprised Naruto was still alive. He didn't think anybody could survive that kind of treatment, but then again, if anyone could, the fire obsessed blond was on the top of Kiba's list of candidates. He was clearly melting his way out, but it wasn't going fast enough. 'Come on, Naruto. I can't save the bridge builder with this guy on my ass. Akamaru and I can't take a hit like that.'

"Heh." Zabuza chuckled, standing over the bridge builder. Sharingan Kakashi was lost in the mist, the pink haired girl was bleeding to death, and if the hyuuga bitch took her hand off that dressing, it would only happen faster. The other ninja Gato had hired after his first failure were holding off two of the genin and the Jounin, and with Haku in the way, the last genin couldn't make a move. He lifted his sword in his one good hand, readying himself for the downward strike that would end the old man once and for all. There was nobody that could stop him. "Looks like your luck has run out, bridge builder."

The ground around Zabuza exploded as a pack of dogs emerged from beneath him, their jaws snapping towards his limbs as he quickly tried to avoid them to no avail. Two of them had a grip on his legs, and six more were coming out of the ground from all angles to pin him down. Zabuza refused to let this stop him, however, swinging his sword anyway. Tazuna saw this and flinched, only to see Zabuza's cleaver stop a few inches from his face as the pack of dogs now holding him firmly in their jaws and paws caught his arm, preventing him from completing his attack. Zabuza clenched his teeth, struggling against the dogs holding him, but made no progress. There were too many of them, and with one arm rendered useless, he didn't have the strength to shake them off.

"Zabuza-sama!" Haku cried out in shock, rushing away from the block of ice that still held Naruto. An odd noise emerged from the mist then, like the sound of a thousand birds chirping in unison. Zabuza craned his neck to look, his eyes widening as he spotted Kakashi charging towards him with his hand literally glowing from the amount of chakra he had charged into it.

"How?!" Zabuza growled out, struggling some more. Haku was in motion, but he was too far away. He wouldn't be fast enough. His hands came up in a seal, ignoring the pain in his burnt hand as he began to form the ice mirror.

"I had your blood, Zabuza. No matter how thick the mist, you can't escape my nose." Kakashi replied, the chakra in his hand crackling like lightning as he ran. His Sharingan picked up the ice mirror appearing to Zabuza's left, but he continued unhindered. He was too close to pull back now, thrusting his palm forward towards Zabuza's exposed back.

All throughout this, Naruto watched from within his icy prison, rage in his eyes as his flames burned and his body healed. No! They were his! The masked men were going to die by his fire! He had to prove his strength! The cold boy's strength was not better than his! It couldn't stop him!

"NO!" Naruto roared, the ice around him cracking as he flared his fire as much as he could, willing it to burn hotter, melt the ice faster. The ice began to crack, but it wouldn't be enough. He wouldn't be fast enough.

"No, dammit, no! I'm stronger! I'm **stronger!** This can't stop me!" Naruto roared, but there was nobody that could hear him. The ice finally cracked and gave way, shattering to pieces in an explosion of fire, just as Haku emerged from his mirror between Zabuza and Kakashi. Naruto had no choice but to watch as Haku was run through.

Everyone flinched back as the ice shattered, looking at Naruto in surprise as he charged towards the end of the bridge. Kakashi didn't notice him though, his eyes wide in horror as he found his arm stuck through Haku's chest. Despite the Sharingan, he hadn't seen him move into position. What was that mirror Jutsu? He hadn't been able to follow the speed.

"I'm sorry...Zabuza....Sama....This is it...for me..." Haku coughed blood onto Kakashi's face, his vision tunneling as he lifted his good arm up to the hand that was sticking through his torso. He gripped it firmly, his eyes locking onto Kakashi's. "I'll at least...take...this arm..."

Kakashi tried to extract his arm as ice crackled across Haku's fingertips. In an instant, his arm was frozen solid, frost covering him up to the shoulder as frozen blood and ice stuck out of his limb like blades. He cried out in pain, his nindogs disappearing into puffs of smoke. Zabuza didn't get the chance to turn on him, though, as Naruto appeared in a blaze of fury, descending on Zabuza with his fire shaped like claws. As Kakashi kicked Haku's corpse off his arm, Zabuza was intercepting Naruto in mid air with his cleaver, hurling the blond towards the water.

"Tch...careless..." Kakashi muttered to himself, kneeling on the bridge and staring down at his arm through the pain. He couldn't move it. He wasn't even sure if it could be saved. He glance up to see Zabuza with his cleaver in hand, a victorious grin on his face.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Kiba shouted, Akamaru right beside him as the two ran at Zabuza so fast their vision was tunneling. Zabuza turned to look at them, grunting as he moved. With one crippled arm, the damage he had previously taken from Kakashi and numerous large wounds from the dogs that had just attacked him, he wasn't exactly in tiptop shape. However, he wasn't about to let some punk genin get the drop on him, preparing himself for when Kiba got into range.

"Kiba, don't!" Kakashi tried to warn, but he didn't listen. In an instant, they were in range, and Zabuza swung his sword with all the strength his one good arm allowed, intent on bisecting both Inuzuka approaching him. Were it not for the Sharingan, Kakashi never would have seen the determined look that crossed Kiba's face at that moment.

'Now, Akamaru!' Kiba thought, sensing the counter as he and Akamaru rose their arms and pushed off from one another. At the last possible instant, they broke off to either side and Zabuza's strike hit nothing but air, much to his surprise. Kiba and Akamaru both landed and sprung back in the direction they came, coming in towards Zabuza with a pincer attack from either side.

"GATSUUGA!" Kiba yelled as he attacked. Zabuza moved to dodge, only to find that Kakashi had grabbed hold of his ankle with his good arm much too late to do a thing about it. The twisting vortexes of fangs, claws and chakra smashed into his body on either side, tearing through flesh and bone with equal ease as he cried out in pain, blood and bits of torn flesh being spread across the area in a fine mist as Akamaru and Kiba touched down after their attack. Kiba looked down at himself, breathing heavily and staring at the blood now staining his hands and arms. His life had flashed before his eyes in the middle of that. He had reacted more on instinct than anything, and he just...he just tore a man apart. He'd never used that technique on a person before...

"You've done well, Kiba. Be proud." Kakashi reassured him, standing and looking down at the fallen body of Zabuza. The Inuzuka clan jutsu were vicious, but effective, he had to admit.

Kurenai all but collapsed with a gasp of breath, clutching her side painfully as she looked down at the dead body of the Jounin. She had been lucky to get him with that last genjutsu. She was pretty sure that her ribs had broken even further, and now she doubted she could move much at all without risking puncturing a lung or something.

Kurenai looked up towards her students to see that both of their opponents were also down. It looked like Shino's insects had gotten on both of them, which could only mean the two had decided to work together. Kurenai couldn't help but smile a bit as her students stood over their fallen enemies. She had been worried about those two, since both were so quiet, but it seemed like they were bonding after all.

"Are you alright, Kurenai-sensei?" Sasuke asked as he and Shino approached their downed teacher. He had to marvel a bit at her ability when he saw the dead Jounin. He had experienced that man's strength first hand, and to take him out while injured? His teacher was apparently a force to be reckoned with.

"Yes, I'm fine." Kurenai replied, though she struggled to get on her feet, wincing in pain as she did so. It looked like the mercenaries and bandits were wisely making a run for it, most of them not even bothering to bring their weapons with them. The village was in shambles, though. The homes had been ransacked, and many of the villagers were now dead or dying in the streets. With the attackers fleeing, the able bodied were now doing their best to save the wounded, but things weren't looking good.

"Come on, we should help tend to the wounded." Sasuke said as he turned to Shino, who nodded in response. Kurenai started to move as well, however Sasuke quickly put his hand on her shoulder, forcing her to stop. "That means you, too, sensei. Try not to move too much."

Akamaru had returned to normal and was now nuzzling Kiba's hands, trying to get a reaction from the boy. He looked down at Akamaru, seeing the look in his eyes and hearing the whimper in his voice, nodding in response. He looked up again, seeing that Sakura was now sitting up, letting Hinata wrap her torso in a bandage, which was a good sign that she'd recover from whatever had happened to her. Kiba hadn't seen how she got hurt, but he was glad his teammate would be okay.

"The first one is never easy, Kiba, but you did what was necessary. You shouldn't dwell on it." Kiba looked up to see Kakashi sitting beside him and nodding slowly. His eyes drifted to his teacher's arm, seeing the ice that Kakashi was even now trying to break away. It...didn't look good.

"Yeah...I just...I wasn't expecting the blood, I guess." Kiba replied, looking down at the blood that still stained his hands. He desperately wanted to wash it away, but now wasn't really the time for that. "It never really dawned on me how...messy...my jutsu is."

"Yeah, I can understand how you feel." Kakashi replied, doing his best to talk his student through what had happened. Kiba had killed a man, and despite being a ninja, that wasn't something a 12 year old boy could easily cope with. It would need some time to come to terms with what he'd done. Thinking this, Kakashi's thoughts turned back to what had happened, at the way Kiba had avoided Zabuza's counter at the last possible moment. He was honestly impressed that Kiba could react so quickly.

While all this was happening, Naruto emerged from the water, staring forward through unfocused eyes as he made his way back onto the bridge. None of his teammates seemed to notice him as he climbed back up, standing on the end of the bridge before the dead body of the boy who had beaten him, proven himself stronger. The boy had stopped him. Despite everything, he had been stopped, trapped in that ice, unable to do anything as the boy proved his strength and gave his life to protect another. He died strong. But why?

"Why?" Naruto muttered, falling to his knees in front of Haku's body. Why had this boy sacrificed his life? What was the point of that strength if it meant he would die? He couldn't understand it. Was this boy really so strong, or was Naruto simply weak? No! He shook his head. That couldn't be right. He was strong! He just never had the chance to prove it. The boy didn't let him prove it. He went off and died like a coward before Naruto could show him he was stronger, before he could kill the boy's strength. It wasn't fair, he decided. He was supposed to prove his strength, and that had been taken from him. Naruto's fire began to slowly burn as he clenched his fists, glaring down at the corpse in front of him. His chance to prove himself was stolen from him. This boy had been strong, and now he was dead, and Naruto would never know who was stronger. It infuriated him.

"Grandpa!" Tazuna stood up and looked over the village at the sound of the boy's voice, seeing his grandson approaching him with tears in his eyes.

"Inari?" Tazuna muttered, kneeling down to catch the boy in his arms as he ran at him. "Why are you crying? What's wrong?"

"It's mom! Gato took mom!" Inari cried into his grandfather's shoulder, "He's gonna kill her, just like dad!"

"Heh, that's right, brat." Gato replied, his cane clicking against the ground as he approached. His two samurai bodyguards were on either side of him, one of them holding a woman hostage, his blade pressed against her throat. She was bound and gagged, and was struggling to no avail against her captor. "Give yourself up, Tazuna. I've got your daughter, and if any of your ninja friends come near me, she dies, understand?"

"Tsunami! Let her go, you bastard!" Tazuna shouted. Kakashi tensed, glaring at Gato and his two bodyguards. Were it not for his arm, he had no doubt he could drop all three of them and save the woman, but injured as he was, it'd be a gamble to see if he could move fast enough to prevent her death. And with Kurenai down as well, that only left the genin, and none of them were fast enough to guarantee her survival. Could he risk it?

"It's obvious that Mist ninja are worthless. You were smart to go to Konoha, Tazuna. I'll give you credit for that." Gato began, bowing slightly as he leaned on his cane, "But the game is over. I'm going to put an end to your life and the bridge in the same move. I'm giving you two choices, Tazuna! Kill yourself, or watch your daughter die!"

"Damn you, Gato!" Tazuna growled, trembling slightly as he considered his options. Naruto glanced over his shoulder at the commotion, hearing the pig faced man mentioning the bridge. Yes, that was it. The bridge. Strong ninja don't fail missions. If he finished the mission, he would prove he was strong. What had they called that pig faced man? Gato? He had heard that somewhere before. Gato was the one who hired the ninja they had fought, wasn't he? Yes, that was it. Gato was the opponent to the bridge. If he killed Gato, nothing would stop the bridge from being built.

Gato blinked as he saw the blond boy coming his way, not expecting such bold action. What was that boy thinking? Couldn't he see he was holding all the cards, here? He couldn't just waltz up to him and take the woman!

"Hey, what do you think you're doing, brat? Back off! I'll kill the woman if you get any closer!" Gato shouted, but it seemed the blond completely ignored him, still walking towards him with a purpose. The two bodyguards glanced at one another before the one not holding Tsunami walked forward, standing in Naruto's path and drawing his sword.

"End of the line, kid." The samurai said, slashing towards Naruto at high speed. His sword sank into Naruto's collarbone and didn't stop until it was halfway through his torso, blood spraying out of the wound. The blond didn't even look to be in any discomfort from the attack. Before the samurai could comprehend this factor, however, he could feel Naruto's hand touching his chest, and in the next instant, he was simply gone. Naruto and the samurai burst into flames in unison, the only difference being that the Samurai was screaming. He released his sword and stumbled away before collapsing to the ground, his body rapidly becoming nothing more than a piece of human shaped charcoal as Naruto simply pulled the now molten sword out of his chest and let the wound close, discarding the weapon without a second thought.

Needless to say, Gato was now looking at the boy in genuine fear, having taken several steps back. His second bodyguard was also on edge now, watching the blond bonfire continue to come towards them.

"D...Don't come any closer! I'll kill her, damn it!" The bodyguard shouted, tensing his arm as he held his blade at Tsunami's throat. She screamed into her gag and struggled desperately, but he didn't let up his grip. Despite his threat, however, the blond was still coming at them. Gato took several more steps back.

"No, stop! They'll kill her!" Tazuna shouted, but Naruto wasn't listening to him. He just kept moving forward. The bodyguard drew his sword across Tsunami's throat in one quick motion, blood pouring from the wound as the fear and pain in the woman's eyes grew. As she collapsed to the ground, the bodyguard finally realized his error. The boy never cared about the woman, and now there was nothing between him and the blond.

Sasuke and Shino moved towards Tsunami as quickly as they could, though both knew it was a lost cause. Neither were medics, and the best they could do would be to slow the woman's inevitable death. Sasuke pressed a dressing against the wound in the woman's throat, tearing off the gag as Shino held her upright to keep her from drowning on her own blood. Sasuke could barely stand to meet her eyes, seeing the desperation there as she choked and gagged on her own blood, trying to breathe. There was another burst of fire and Sasuke looked up, seeing the bodyguard's flaming body hit the ground as Naruto chased down Gato, who at this point was running in the opposite direction at a full clip. He stood no chance against Naruto's speed, however, and it wasn't long before another column of fire rose into the sky, accompanied by the screams of a dying man.

"Tsunami!" Tazuna cried out, sliding to a stop as he kneeled next to the two ninja trying to save his daughter's life. The bridge builder looked into the strange red eyes of the boy with the mask, looking for hope, reassurance, anything that was a sign that she'd pull through, but all he saw was grim pity. Tsunami's hand suddenly grasped his firmly and he turned towards his daughter. The pain and fear in her eyes were like daggers in his heart. He could barely stand it.

"You're going to be fine, honey, just fine..." Tazuna choked on his tears as he tried to reassure his daughter. The blood had soaked straight through the dressing in Sasuke's hand and was now pouring out between his fingers and down the woman's chest, and he knew even more of it was flowing down her throat. She coughed and hacked to clear her lungs of blood, but it didn't matter. She'd lost too much, and the grip she had on her father's hand began to loosen as the life faded from her eyes.

"Tsunami...Tsunami! No, wake up!" Tazuna insisted as his daughter slumped, trying to resist the urge to shake her. Sasuke let out a breath he didn't realize he had been holding as he let go of the dressing. Tazuna had taken his daughter out of Shino's arms and was now cradling her to his chest, tears pouring down his face. Sasuke and Shino both stood up, sharing a look before they both turned towards Naruto with no small amount of disdain as he approached Tazuna from behind. The blond may as well have not known they were there, for all he noticed.

"Finish the bridge." Naruto insisted. Tazuna either didn't hear him or didn't care what he said, continuing to hold his daughter's body and cry. "Did you hear me, old man? Finish the bridge."

Kakashi approached them now, a harsh look in his eyes as he regarded Naruto. The boy had just gotten Tazuna's daughter killed, and was now harassing the man when he needed to mourn. He had to put a stop to this.

"Naruto, you-" Kakashi never had the chance to voice his disapproval, however, as Naruto fixed his gaze on Kakashi and glared with absolute rage and hatred. His killing intent was palpable, coming off his body in focused, roaring blasts that made Kakashi feel like his chakra was being crushed and his blood was boiling. The pain was most evident in his sharingan eye, which he quickly realized was bleeding. He wasn't the only one, however. He was vaguely aware that Sasuke had collapsed, blood pouring from his eyes, and he could distinctly hear Hinata screaming behind him.

'His killing intent...it's like it attacks doujutsu...' Kakashi realized, suddenly understanding what had happened to Hinata all those years ago. He quickly redirected the chakra flow in his eye, lessening the pain substantially.

"You don't get to talk, cat!" Naruto growled, his killing intent focusing like a blade. Kakashi's eye widened as he saw it coming, charging his good arm with chakra to reinforce it and taking the blow head on. It tossed him clean off his feet to land about a meter from where he started, and judging from the pain in his arm and the wetness he felt, it had cut pretty deep.

'Is this the kyuubi's power?' Kakashi wondered. If he hadn't braced himself, that surely would have taken his arm clean off. The ability to kill with intent alone...it was horrifying to even think of it.

Naruto turned away from the one-eyed cat who had stolen his prey, instead turning back to look at the bridge builder. His killing intent faded away as he did so, much to the relief of everyone who had felt it. Tazuna was now giving Naruto his undivided attention, trembling like a leaf from having been so close to such a frightening presence.

"Finish the bridge." Naruto commanded. With the killer intent gone, a bit of defiance returned to Tazuna as he looked back down at the dead body of his daughter, the anguish and regret starting to overpower his fear.

"My daughter is dead because of you, and my village has been torn apart. What's the point of finishing the bridge now?" Tazuna asked, not looking at Naruto at all.

"Strong ninja do not fail missions. The bridge is my mission. If the bridge is finished, I will prove I am strong." Naruto replied, never taking his eyes off of the bridge builder, who still refused to look at him. Tazuna scoffed, looking over his shoulder at the boy.

"My life is over. I don't care about your mission or your strength." Tazuna remarked. He turned back to his daughter only to be pulled off his knees and spun around. The blond was now holding the bridge builder up, staring into Tazuna with those unnaturally red and slitted eyes.

"Finish the bridge." Naruto ordered in a tone that would not take no as an answer, glaring at Tazuna as his killer intent began to rise again.

"Go ahead and kill me, boy. It won't solve anything." Tazuna said evenly, staring back at Naruto. The blond let go of his shirt, dropping the bridge builder with a growl.

"No, I won't kill you now. I'd save you for last. If you won't finish the bridge, then I will, and I'll add the ashes of everyone you have ever known to my mortar." Naruto replied, his gaze crossing over all of the villagers still in the street as his killer intent multiplied. "I'll kill them all, and I'll make you watch them die. I'll take your arms so you can't struggle, your legs so you can't run, your eyelids so you can't look away. You will sit, and you will watch, and you will listen as they burn to death. They will die screaming, and you will see it. You'll see them all."

Tazuna stared at the boy with his jaw hanging open, his eyes wide. How could a child conceive of such torture? How could he say it with such conviction? Tazuna stared at Naruto's face, looking for any sign of a bluff or hesitation. He found none.

"Finish the bridge." Naruto insisted one last time. Tazuna just nodded in response.

------------

Weeks had passed, and the bridge was slowly but surely reaching completion. Kiba barely noticed, however, having spent all his time in training. He was breathing heavily now, sweat pouring down his face as he quickly pulled off his jacket and discarded it. His eyes were locked on the large rock face in front of him, currently covered in large craters and holes. Damn, this jutsu was hard. It just took so much chakra, it was hard to hold onto it all. Akamaru was sitting on a nearby rock, barking the occasional encouragement, though it sounded similar to taunts to Kiba.

"I'd like to see you do better!" Kiba shouted to his puppy, only to get a few barks like laughter in reply. He frowned and turned back towards the rock, forming the seals and holding out his palm under him, firmly grasping his wrist with his other hand as he concentrated his chakra.

"_Raiton...no, it's just pure chakra! So much it's visible?" Kiba muttered, looking at the crackling ball of chakra in his teacher's hand in amazement. Kakashi held the jutsu up in his good hand, his other arm in a sling and tightly bandaged._

"_Ah, that's right. The chakra in your body naturally leans towards an elemental affinity, and the lightning you see is mine. This jutsu requires you to concentrate so much chakra into your hand, that it becomes visible. Even your affinity becomes apparent." Kakashi explained, letting the jutsu fizzle out as he locked his eyes on Kiba._

"_This is an A rank Assassination Jutsu, designed to kill an enemy in one strike. The intense concentration of chakra causes heightened flesh and bone in your hand and arm, effectively turning your hand into a spear. With enough speed behind it, you can pierce anything. Going that fast can cause your vision to tunnel, however, making it difficult to avoid an enemy counter attack. I thought this technique required the sharingan to be viable, but you've shown me that you can respond fast enough in that situation." Kakashi finished. Kiba glanced at his teacher for a moment, a look of confusion briefly crossing his face._

"_Why are you showing me this? Is it because I...killed that ninja?" Kiba asked, hesitating a bit as he recalled his first kill. Kakashi just shook his head._

"_No, I'm showing you this because its the only technique I know that can pierce Naruto's fire." Kakashi replied, seeing the grim expression that crossed Kiba's face, "I realize now that Naruto is far from stable. He lashed out at me with intent to kill, and I cannot guarantee he won't try the same against you or Sakura. I need to prepare you in case you ever have the need to put him down, and this is the only Jutsu I know that could actually kill him."_

"_I...understand, Kakashi-sensei. I'll master this jutsu as quickly as I can!" Kiba tried to muster up some confidence in his voice, but it came out sounding hollow. The grim atmosphere was hard to overcome._

"_Kiba, if you ever do find the need to use this technique on Naruto, aim for his heart. I cannot stress that enough. Aim for the heart and make sure you don't miss." Kakashi said with absolute authority, looking firmly at Kiba to stress his point, "Naruto will not give you a second shot."_

"_...Right. I'll be careful." Kiba replied, exhaling loudly as he began to form the needed handseals, "Wait, what is this technique called?"_

"Chidori!" Kiba cried out as the chakra crackled to life in his open hand, a solid blue glow forming in his palm as wisps like smoke rose off the flawless center, as hard as stone. He was an earth type, and the perfect sphere in his palm showed it as the air was filled with the sound of a thousand birds. He grit his teeth as sweat rolled down the side of his face as he focused all his concentration on keeping the chakra in his hand, feeling it trying to escape and dissipate. With a yell, he was off like a shot, running towards the rock in front of him and thrusting his palm towards it. He hit with a crash, driving his arm into the large rock up to his shoulder as massive spiderweb cracks spread out from the point of impact. As he pulled his arm back out, large chunks of the rock face fell away, leaving behind a new crater.

"D...Damn...used too much Chakra...I'm still wasting so much of it..." Kiba muttered as he tried to catch his breath. He could only use it twice a day so far before he completely exhausted himself. It just took so much energy, he was having trouble keeping hold of it all. He had to get control of the bleed off...

"Again! I have to try for a third!" Kiba shouted, going through the handseals and praying he didn't collapse from exhaustion after this.

--

_Sasuke glanced over his shoulder at the figure perched on his back, fear in his eyes and pain on his face as his red hot feet seemed to burn holes into his back. The flaming child grinned at him with a mouth filled with fangs, his wild, red slitted eyes standing out against the flames. He leaned in then, forcing Sasuke to turn away as he felt the fire on his face, felt his skin starting to crack and burn from the heat so close to him. His lips were practically touching sasuke's ear, and it was burning._

"_Don't Scream, little cat. Your eyes aren't red. I'm not coming for you yet." The voice said, so quiet it must have been a whisper, and yet it sounded like the hounds of hell to him, breath like brimstone and a tone that vibrated into the depths of his soul a kind of fear unlike any he had felt before. It was only then that he looked up and saw another figure standing a distance away in the rain, body thrown into silhouette by the light of the flames all around them. The only thing he could see was the lines under his bright red eyes, and the shuriken shape of his pupils._

Sasuke gasped loudly as he sat up in bed, his clothes sticking to him in a cold sweat as he got his breathing under control. He remembered. He _remembered._ Oh god, he could remember it all. Ever since he had felt Naruto's killing intent that day, felt his sharingan practically boiling in his eye sockets, he had remembered. Naruto had been there that night, 4 years ago. Naruto and his fire had come to his home, and it had burned to the ground.

Naruto had killed his clan.

Sasuke glanced into the darkness of the room he shared with his team as the sound of slow sobs reached his ears. Hinata was crying again, like she had every night for weeks. She didn't even sleep the first night after the attack, so lost in her terror that she just sat there and shook like a tree in an earthquake. Now, she would wake up in the middle of the night, sometimes in hysterics, but always crying. It was getting better, though. She was recovering. He could just see the outline of her back shaking as she sat up in her futon, trying to control her tears.

"It's okay, Hinata." Sasuke said as he moved across the room, kneeling down behind the girl and putting his arms around her shoulders for support. "He's not here. He's not coming for you. He can't hurt you. I wouldn't let him."

Hinata turned and pressed her face against Sasuke's shoulder, not holding back anymore as she cried and cried. He just held her tighter, giving her whatever support she needed while she cried her terror away. Sasuke didn't know what Naruto had done to her, but the trauma she had suffered was obvious. She could barely stand the sight of the blond, and suffered a complete mental breakdown when he had let his killing intent lose.

"It's okay, Hinata." Sasuke repeated, not even noticing as he started to slowly rock the girl, "He can't hurt you anymore. I won't let him."

Yes, Naruto would never hurt Hinata again, or anyone else for that matter. Sasuke would see to that.

Naruto would die, and when that day came, it would be Sasuke looking down at his corpse.

--

Shino rose with the sun, letting his scouts and drones return to their burrows before closing his jacket and lifting his blanket off his body. He slowly stood and surveyed the room, noticing quickly that Sasuke was, once again, asleep next to Hinata's futon, still holding the girl in his arms. Shino watched the two for a moment, noticing their peaceful looking sleep, before turning and regarding Sasuke's empty bedding. It was a curious mystery. They began the night in separate beds, but by morning, they were together. Shino had yet to discover the reason, being far too heavy a sleeper to notice the way Hinata would wake up in the night. He turned away from them and moved towards the door, stopping momentarily as he finally realized it was brighter than usual. He pulled his sunglasses out of his pocket and put them in place before slipping out of the room. That had been close.

He could hear the distinct sound of sniffling as he stepped out into the hall, turning towards the room of Tazuna's grandson briefly. The boy had lost his mother, and apparently lost his father long ago, so the tears were understandable. Shino was hardly the type to console others, however, and after only a moment of hesitation, descended the stairs into the rest of the house.

It didn't appear as if anyone else was awake, the house feeling empty in the early morning. Sakura, Kakashi and Kurenai were all asleep in the main room, recovering from their injuries, but the rest of the bottom floor was empty. Shino glanced at the three for a moment before walking into the kitchen, seeing the stove that had not been used in weeks and imagining the lively woman of the house standing over it, cooking breakfast, as she had been the first several days Shino had stayed here.

"Good morning, Tsunami-san." Shino told the empty room, finding an empty chair he liked to sit in while he and Tsunami talked in the early morning, before everyone else had bothered to wake. She had been an interesting woman, one of the few in the village that still seemed to have any joy in her. Though he had only been there a short time, he had enjoyed his early morning talks with her. She had been one of the only people who seemed generally interested in the upkeep of the hive, a topic Shino would discuss at length. And when he spoke of it, she didn't look uncomfortable, like his teammates did whenever he brought it up. She would smile, and she would listen. It was a rare thing.

"I hope you slept well." And now she was dead. The colony bustled within him as he stared at the empty space in front of the stove, as if mourning the loss of such a hospitable woman. He had a feeling he was going to miss her.

--

Kakashi gazed out the window towards the bridge, knowing that today was supposed to be the day of completion. Soon, the mission would be over, and they could all go home. But could he really call it a success?

He looked down at his right arm, tightly bound in bandages and held to his chest in a sling. He had been constantly feeding chakra into it for the past several weeks in a desperate attempt to keep the tissue alive. It was the only thing he could do, try to sustain it until he returned to Konoha and got proper medical attention. As it stood, he could barely move it, and he wasn't sure if that would ever change. His career as a Ninja could very well be coming to an end, as far as he could tell.

At that thought, he turned to the other person in the room. Kurenai was once again lying in her futon, ribs tightly wrapped in bandages for support and breathing in fully despite the pain, on Kakashi's insistance. She, too, was in need of immediate medical attention. Unlike his wound, Kakashi doubted her injury could be a permanently debilitating one, but it was still severe enough that he was wondering how he would even get the woman home. She certainly wasn't going to walk. She shouldn't even be moved in her condition.

'Can I really call this a success?' Kakashi thought again, turning his eyes back towards the window. Sakura was making a full recovery, which was a bonus. Her wounds would still take some time to fully go away, but they had closed and were well on their way to healing, though he knew that they would leave behind obvious, nasty scars. For a young girl, especially one as vain as Sakura, it might as well have been a fatal wound. She had spent much of the past few weeks sulking, much to Kakashi's annoyance. It was worse that Kurenai sympathized with her, considering it meant he had to put up with the both of them. With all three injured, they hadn't moved much from the main room as they recovered, forcing Kakashi to listen to the girl talk as Kurenai tried to console Sakura over the loss of her perfect complexion.

'If only my problems were so simple,' Kakashi thought, looking out at the villagers passing by the window. How many of them had died in the attack? How many families had been destroyed, homes ruined? Tazuna was like a walking corpse, no life in him since Naruto's threat, almost mindlessly striving towards finishing the bridge. How many others had suffered? Could this really be called a victory?

'I had to teach one of my students how to kill his teammate. Can that really be called a success?' Kakashi wondered, knowing that Kiba was probably still practicing the Chidori even now. He didn't know how the boy managed to practice all day, considering how rapidly that technique drained his chakra, but Kiba would stay out all night and return in complete exhaustion. Kakashi was starting to worry that he might not come back, instead dying in the forest of chakra exhaustion.

"The bridge is finished!" Naruto shouted happily as he entered the house, quickly finding Kakashi and flashing the injured jounin a grin, "The bridge is finished! Mission completed! Strong ninja do not fail missions, and I didn't fail. I am strong!"

Kakashi looked at the boy through his one open eye, watching the childlike joy on his face with a mixed expression. How could Naruto be so innocent, and yet so deadly? It was almost hard to imagine that this laughing boy was a cold blooded murderer, a callous monster.

"Yeah, Naruto, you are strong." Kakashi muttered without much conviction. So much had gone wrong, so much had been lost, but they were alive. Team 7 and Team 8 had suffered no casualties, and the bridge had been completed. That would have to suffice, Kakashi decided.

The mission was a success.

---------

To be Continued

Author's notes: The last installment of the Wave arc. Yes! Finally! I'm fucking done! And I'm never coming back to it again! I get to move on again.

Next Time: Gaara and her siblings return to Suna with the mission completed, but the Kazekage is unhappy with his living weapon. What will happen to Gaara as she faces her father's wrath? And what will come of his meeting with Orochimaru? Find out in the next installment of But for the Grace of God: Of Fallen Innocence.

Ryo-Wolf


End file.
